Colliding Destinies: Lost
by RAHbooks
Summary: Artemis Fowl the Second thought his greatest challenge was behind him-until Opal Koboi came back from the dead and abducted him. Inoue Orihime does not remember her past or why anyone would want to take her to a strange place. They must join forces to escape while their friends, Butler, Holly, Urahara, and Ishida band to together to search for them. T for some violence.
1. Prologue Memories

**This is an Artemis Fowl/Bleach crossover. since the charecters are unaware of each others adventures and worlds things from both fandoms will be explained by them to each other as the story calls for it. This is the first in a series, so not everything may be explained.**

 **Bleach fans, this story takes place after the end of the Arrancar arc with some changes to how that story arc ended which will be detailed as the story progress over the course of the series.**

 **Artemis Fowl fans, this story takes place after TLG with no changes to the events in the books.**

 **Prologue**

 **Memories**

 **Tokyo, Japan: Late December**

"I think she's waking up," the nurse informed the doctor as she fetched the patient's chart. They were back to paper charts after the crash. Maybe electronic records hadn't been a good idea after all, so much information had been lost just days ago when many technological advancements had spontaneously exploded or simply stopped working in what was being called the Great Techno-Crash. As a result the hospital had no information on many patients' history including Inoue Orihime who had been found near the site of one of the largest explosions in Tokyo. They had only been able to identify her because she had a student ID on her. So far they had had no luck locating the teenager's family; it looked like any she had must have died in the explosion.

The girl woke up almost as soon as the nurse arrived in her room. She looked around in confusion but no particular alarm. "Where am I?" she asked calmly.

"The hospital," the nurse answered, taking her vitals with outdated manual equipment.

Inoue frowned slightly, "Was I hurt?"

"Yes, you were in an accident," no need to alarm her by giving her all the details. "Can you tell me your name?"

The girl was silent for a moment, and then whispered sounding truly frightened now, "No. I can't. I don't know who I am!"

 **Fowl Manor, Ireland: Six Months Later**

"Don't tell him everything, Holly, or we won't know if he really remembers", Foaly interrupted the Elfin captain before she could get too far into the story.

"So I'm supposed to tell him nothing?" Holly demanded of the Centaur.

"He has a point, we really should let him remember on his own," Butler pointed out. Holly still didn't like it but if anyone had her friend's best interest in mind it was Butler.

"Do I get a say in this?" Artemis Fowl the Second, the subject of their conversation asked.

Foaly snorted, "With your brains you should remember on your own in no time. Would you mind not sitting like a sack of potatoes?" Artemis could barely stand and so was riding the Centaur to the manor house.

"Why doesn't he remember?" Butler asked.

Foaly shrugged, "He died and came back in a clone. It's very confusing."

"A clone?" Artemis asked.

"You left the DNA for us to grow a clone of you. Clones are vegetative so when we brought it to where you died you were able to take up residence." Holly explained.

"I can't tell you how many laws we broke doing it, if you hadn't saved the world so many times the Council never would have let us get away with it," Foaly added.

Artemis was stunned. He didn't know who he was let alone who these people who had gone to such trouble to save him were, but it was clear that whatever happened he wouldn't have to face it alone.

 **Yeah, that was really short so I'm gonna go ahead and post the first chapter too.**

 **Thanks and prayers,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	2. Chapter One Home

**Okay, so I know I've been horrible about keeping up with updates in the past, but this time I actually wrote the whole story before I started posting it, and I've even started on the next in the series. I'm planning to keep up with once a week updates. The exact day may vary depending on schedules, but I'll try to be consistent with that as well.**

 **Chapter One**

 **Home**

 **Tokyo, Japan**

 _He wasn't stopping. That horrible creature had clearly won already, his opponent wasn't even fighting back anymore, but he wouldn't stop literally tearing him apart. She watched helplessly as he—it nothing that would do this could be human—tore off his arm sending blood spraying in all directions, then threw him through the air. Somehow it moved fast enough to grab him before he landed, then slammed him down with such force the ground cracked. A red light flashed, seeming to fill the otherwise dark world until it faded. The creature picked up its lifeless opponent by his one remaining wing and tossed him, as if he was simply rubbish it wanted out of its way. She couldn't stop herself from running toward them. She didn't know what she could do, all she knew was she didn't want him to die. Impossibly he was standing, reaching for her; she stretched out her hand trying to get to him, for a moment she thought she would make it…_

Orihime sat up in bed with a gasp. She didn't scream, she had had the nightmare too many times for it to still make her scream. The same images had haunted her for as long as she could remember, about a year and a half now since she had woken up in the hospital with no idea who she was and she was no closer to any answers. She glanced at the clock and sighed; she might as well get up and get ready for school.

After she dressed in her uniform she slipped into the kitchen to make breakfast. They wouldn't complain, this foster "family" seemed to hardly notice her. Of course if they didn't notice her they might not think to ask for her to be moved to a new "home". Maybe it was better to be invisible, at least until she turned eighteen and could leave the system. They had managed to find her birth certificate, so she knew her birthday (September third) and how old she was (seventeen), but that was all she knew. She still saw a psychiatrist, today was one of those days, but they had more or less given up on retrieving her memories, it was mostly for the night terrors. Not that it was actually doing any good.

The people she was currently living with came in to get their own breakfasts while she was eating. The two adults talked cheerfully, but Orihime sat silently and they made no attempt to include her in the conversation. She couldn't blame them, there was no point in getting attached when one way or another she would probably be gone within a few weeks.

 **Fowl Manor, Ireland**

 _Artemis sat in his office chair looking at the one large screen that had replaced the many computers usually occupying the room. The mind screen, so I am dreaming again. A moment later he heard someone calling him, "Artemis, can you hear me?" he recognized the voice but couldn't put a name or face to it._

 _"Yes, who are you?" he didn't bother turning around; he knew he wouldn't see anyone._

 _"My name is…" the voice faded._

 _"Why do you keep trying? You know you never hear the name," the second, chilling voice asked mockingly._

 _"Do not listen to that foul demon! You will hear me when you are ready, noble knight." The first voice insisted._

 _"How many times must I tell you, I am not a knight, noble or otherwise?" Artemis asked with a sigh._

 _"Finally you got something right! You are more the villain of the piece and you know it."_

 _Artemis turned to face the second voice and was met by the cold eyes and cruel smile of himself at twelve years old._

Artemis opened his eyes to see the familiar ceiling of his own room. He sighed; he had been having the same dream every night since his return to life nearly a year ago. Not exactly the same dream. The younger version of him seemed to remember the previous dreams. That made sense in a way, it was all in his head, and he knew what he had dreamed. There were two things about it he still didn't understand: the voice whose name he could never hear and why he was in the "mind space" version of his office where he had witnessed the humiliating actions of the alter ego whose name he couldn't remember despite the fact that, as Foaly had predicted, he had recovered most of his memories.

Putting thoughts of the dream aside, Artemis dressed and went downstairs to the dining room where Butler was already setting out breakfast. "Good morning, old friend," Artemis greeted the manservant, hiding his amusement at the way the light reflected off his bald head.

Butler smiled, "Good morning Artemis." He frowned slightly as he could tell his young friend had once again not slept well, but before he could ask his younger sister, Juliet, came in with five-year-old twins Myles and Becket.

"Good morning, you two!" she greeted them cheerfully.

"Good morning, can I have an espresso?" Beckett said hopefully.

"Of course not, simple-toon, " Myles sighed. He knew perfectly well how to properly pronounce simpleton, he just thought it was funny to say it his way.

"Beckett, don't call your brother a simpleton," Artemis Fowl Senior took his place at the head of the table. His wife Angeline followed carrying their one-year-old daughter, Morgan. After strapping the youngest Fowl into a high chair she greeted each of her sons as well as Butler and Juliet who sat at the table like family rather than servants. She smiled, "I know it's been a year, but I'm so glad to have the whole family together again." Artemis had to agree.

 **Tokyo, Japan**

Orihime got through the school day the same way she always did, by being as invisible as possible. So far all her foster homes had been in the same area so she was able to stay at the same school. The lack of anyone acting relieved to see her and asking where she had been on her first day told her that either this was not the school she had been to before or she had always been invisible.

She went through the routine of changing classes and taking notes without any trouble. One advantage of not having any friends was that she had plenty of time to study, so she always got good grades and there was no reason for any of the teachers to complain. All too soon the last bell rang and it was time to go see her psychiatrist.

She stepped into the lobby half hoping that he was with someone else and she wouldn't have to talk to him right away, but the secretary waved her in. Well, she might as well get it over with.

"Inoue-san, how are you doing?" he asked once she sat down.

"I'm all right," she answered simply.

"Are you still having the night terrors?"

She held back a sigh. He knew the answer. "Yes, sir."

"But you are not waking up screaming anymore?"

Again he already knew the answer; apparently he was going to be thorough today. "No, sir."

"Why do you think that is?"

"Maybe because I've been having the same dream for over a year," she struggled to keep her voice even. He asked her to describe the dream to him which she did.

"And what do you think would cause you to have such a dream?" he asked, loosening his usually tightly buttoned collar. She had described it more graphically than usual and he was looking a bit pale. There must be something really wrong with her to have a dream that would disturb a professional.

"Trauma from the accident," it was the only answer she could give since she couldn't remember anything from before.

"Is that why most of your reports for school are about the Techno-crash?"

She shrugged, "I guess. I can't remember it so I wanted to learn more about it. Some of it is really strange."

"Such as?"

"Well they never found out what caused it. Then things went back to normal so quickly. At first it seemed like everything was going to change, but now everyone acts like it never happened."

"Well no one really wanted to go back to 'the good old days'. Is there anything else you think is strange about it?"

She hesitated a moment before answering. "Well there were all those sightings of aliens, or fairies, or whatever they were."

"That was put down to mass hysteria."

"But there were pictures."

"Anyone can Photo-shop."

"Not right after the crash, and then all the sites that had pictures on them just disappeared, like someone didn't want them to be seen."

"Probably the people running those sites got tired of the joke."

"All of them? It's the Internet; think about all the sites dedicated to Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, even ghosts. Even if it was a hoax there would still be something, but it's all gone. To me that seems suspicious."

"So who do you think is behind it?"

"They are; the people— or whatever—in the pictures. They don't want to be found."

"Why not?"

"Have you seen ET?"

He smiled and nodded to indicate he understood her point, and then asked, "What makes you so sure that they are real?"

"I don't know. It just feels like there has to be something else out there. Something most people don't know about."

"Is it possible you just want to believe that?"

Orihime sighed, "Probably."

Eventually he was satisfied that they had accomplished all they were going to for the day. Orihime took her time walking back to the house she was staying at. She knew they wouldn't be worried if she was a bit late. As the sun set, she realized she felt as if she was being followed, or at least watched. She glanced around, but saw no one; still she picked up her pace.

As she rounded a corner a woman with green hair wearing white clothing that was obviously a uniform and a helmet that appeared to be made of bone with shapes like a ram's horn stepped in front of her. A strange pink mark stretched across her the bridge of her nose curving up to round off at the outer corner of each of her hazel eyes. "Hello, Hime-chan. It's been a long time".

"Who are you?" Orihime whispered. From the corner of her eye she looked for help, but no one seemed to notice the strange woman.

The woman frowned, "You don't remember?" Orihime shook her head. "Well that makes this more difficult. I need you to come with me."

Orihime took a step back, "Why? What do you want?"

"I'm not the one who wants you, but I'm afraid there are no other options at the moment. You'll just have to trust me."

"I don't know you!"

"You used to; you saved my life once, now it's my turn, but to do that I have to give your enemies what they want; for now at least."

"What enemies? What did I do?"

"Enemies might be a stretch, but they are not your friends."

"If you're so concerned why do want to take me to them?" she noticed that some people were giving her curious looks, but no one seemed alarmed.

"Because if I don't, they will send someone who isn't so concerned, and you don't seem able to handle that at the moment."

Orihime considered for a few seconds. It seemed her options were to either go without trouble now, or be forced to later. If this woman knew her, perhaps this was her best chance to find some answers. "Fine, I'll come."

 **Fowl Manor, Ireland**

Artemis spent most of the day in his study working on various (mostly legal) projects with frequent and not entirely unwelcome interruptions from the twins. The last interruption however came from Holly. When the fairy communicator she had given him beeped he deliberately waited before answering. Holly's image appeared in a small hologram on his desk.

"Honestly, Captain, I was in the middle of something very important. Couldn't this wait?"

"Come on, Mud Boy, we both know you were just staring at the communicator waiting for me to call," she teased. "Mud People" was what fairies called humans. Holly had initially used "Mud Boy" as an insult, but now it was purely affectionate. She had grown her auburn hair down to chin length so that it covered her pointed ears, her mismatched eyes, left blue and right hazel shone with mischief.

"I am nearly twenty-one; can you at least use Mud Man?"

Holly snorted, "You're only that old if you count Hybras which you shouldn't. You weren't really aging." Thanks to the time he and Holly had spent in Limbo on the island of Hybras he was actually closer to seventeen.

"It is what my birth certificate says. Why should I tell everyone that they are wrong?"

"Usually you love doing that. By the way is your father still buying the excuse that you were hiding from the Russian Mafia for this last disappearing act?"

"He has not questioned it as far as I know. No one is looking into the fairy sightings from the crash either. I managed to shut down all the sites with photographic evidence. I think Foaly is being paranoid to want them completely erased, that would make me more suspicious."

"Not everyone thinks the way you do, Arty. And the LEP gave you quite a commission for that, so stop complaining."

"I simply cannot see why Foaly could not do that himself."

"Because he's paranoid that someone could hack into the LEP through the connection, and that C-cube you rebuilt-even though you promised not to-prevents that."

Artemis smiled and decided it was best not to tell her that he had integrated the communicator he was using to talk to her into the C-cube's latest upgrade. "I am not selling it, it is for my personal use only, and it was useful to the People as well so perhaps you should stop complaining." "The People" was what fairies preferred to call themselves, so Artemis tried to remember to use that term rather than fairies when actually talking to them.

They continued talking until Butler entered the study. "Hey, big guy," Holly smiled when he stepped into her field of vision behind Artemis. He had to lean down so she could see his face.

"I hate to interrupt, but I need to take Artemis to the dojo to train. If I leave him by himself he might build a space shuttle instead."

Holly laughed, "Good luck with that! I'll talk to you later then," The hologram fizzled out.

Up until the incident surrounding the Techno-crash Butler had been Artemis' bodyguard. During that disaster he had been too badly injured to continue those duties and Artemis had died. Butler had never really recovered, so when Artemis returned he insisted that his charge learn to defend himself. Artemis went along with the training but he had no coordination. He was slowly improving, but he wouldn't be winning any matches any time soon.

"You're still having those dreams, aren't you?" Butler asked as Artemis stretched in preparation to train, his dark hair brushing his blue eyes as he bent down.

"It is only a dream, Butler. Hardly anything to be concerned about," the young genius responded.

"It does concern me if you're losing sleep over it. What if you're having a relapse of the Atlantis Complex?" Atlantis Complex was a psychological condition that usually only fairies had. When he was fifteen Artemis had developed it as a result of a combination of meddling in magic and feeling guilty for his previous criminal activities. It was this condition that had caused his alter ego. The treatment had involved nearly a year in a fairy institution followed by six months of weekly visits to one of their psychiatrists. He had only just received a clean bill of health when the Techno-crash happened, and so Butler's concern was understandable.

"I have already looked into the possibility of a relapse, but odd dreams are not listed as a symptom. Everyone has strange dreams at times. They will pass."

"Artemis this has been going on since…well since you came back to life. Is it possible that it's more than coincidence?"

"Perhaps, but as long as the trouble is confined to my dreams I see no reason for alarm. Now shall we begin our routine?"

Butler was not happy with the way Artemis dismissed his concerns, but psychology was not his field. The familiar training routine provided a welcome distraction as he focused on the difficult task of teaching Artemis to defend himself.

Hours later when Butler finally declared the day's training over Artemis went to the stables and saddled up his favorite Arabian Stallion, Black Comet. He rode out to the pit surrounding the remains of an ancient tower. This was where he had witnessed the death of his nemesis, the pixie Opal Koboi. One of the berserker soldiers she had summoned from the dead had put a knife through her heart. He dismounted next to the strange burnt orange roses that marked the spot where he had died, caught in the magic that summoned the berserkers back to the afterlife. The same spot where Holly, Foaly and Butler had placed his clone so he could occupy it and return to life. He remembered nothing of the six months in between.

Suddenly Black Comet reared and bolted. The stallion was not usually skittish. Artemis turned to see what could have frightened him and what he saw was impossible.

"Hello, Mud Boy. Did you miss me?"

"Koboi? But you are dead!"

"Yes. And so are you." A moment later the world went dark.

 **Well, that's it for today. Let me know what you think. Constructive criticism is just as welcome as any other reviews.**

 **Thanks and prayers,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	3. Chapter Two Captured

**Whoops! I forgot to put a disclaimer on the last two chapters! Well I don't own Artemis Fowl or Bleach, and I suspect ya'll already knew that. This chapter has a lot of exposition, especially in the first part. I hope it's not too confusing.**

 **Chapter Two**

 **Captured**

 **Fowl Manor, Ireland**

Holly unstrapped and opened the hatch before the shuttle's engines had fully stopped. Foaly wasn't far behind. Butler met them at the end of the ramp. Holly stayed higher up on it a moment to be at eye level with the nearly seven feet tall human. There were disadvantages to only being three feet tall. Even Foaly was a few centimeters taller than her.

"I wasn't sure if they would let you both come."

"All we had to do was mention that Artemis Fowl was involved. They would have let us bring No1 if he wasn't still on the moon base," Foaly pointed out.

"Where is he?" Holly asked.

Butler didn't have to ask who she meant; he knew she was talking about Artemis. "In the barn," he led the way. He had warned them but Holly still was not prepared to see her friend lying lifeless again. She checked for a pulse even though she knew Butler already had. There wasn't one.

"What happened?" Holly whispered. Without a word Butler pulled the C-cube from a pocket.

"Cube, replay security footage," he had uploaded the relevant section while waiting for the fairies to arrive. They watched as Artemis dismounted, looked at the roses and the horse ran away. Artemis turned, seemed to look at nothing for a moment, and then collapsed.

"It was the same place he died before. Is there a connection?" Butler asked.

"Cube, enhance and replay just before Artemis collapsed." Foaly commanded. The Cube did as asked. "He said something. Cube, analyze, what did Artemis say?" A moment later the Cube played the words "Koboi, but you are dead."

"Was he hallucinating?" Holly wondered.

"He had been having strange dreams lately," Butler confessed. "He didn't seem to think it was anything to worry about."

"What kind of dreams?" Foaly asked.

"He would hear someone calling, but never heard their name or saw who it was. When he heard another voice and turned around he would see himself, but the way he was when he first found out about fairies," he glanced at Holly, sorry to bring up how she had first met Artemis, but she said nothing.

"I'm going to get some equipment from the shuttle. Then I want to go out there and look around." Foaly announced.

A few minutes later Holly and Butler were watching while Foaly scanned the area of Artemis' collapse. "There's a high concentration of reishi right where he was looking."

"What does that mean?" Butler asked.

"Spirit particles."

"I know the translation. What are they?"

"It's what non-corporeal beings are made of. Since they aren't solid they basically take up the same space as the air, so they leave behind traces of reishi. This little wonder," he patted the device he was holding, "takes a sample from the air and analyzes any spirit particles it finds. I can even identify exactly what they came from. Sort of like DNA."

"Do you mean ghosts, like Artemis was before we got the clone to him?"

"Loosely yes. There are actually three major groups. Spirits that haven't moved on yet, the ones you call ghosts. Hollows, which are spirits who can't rest, they literally lose their hearts and…well they feed on spirit particles, they actually get stronger by eating other beings made of reishi, like ghosts and even other Hollows. Then there are Shinigami who help ghosts move on and exterminate Hollows. There isn't enough reishi to indicate that one is here now, but there definitely was earlier."

"Get to the point, Foaly! What happened here?" Holly demanded.

"Well judging by the type of reishi, I'd say there was a Hollow here, more precisely an Arrancar which is the most powerful kind of hollow. It—she—wouldn't have shown up on camera. Only fairies and a handful of humans, ones with unusual amounts of reiryoku, can see them."

Holly was getting frustrated with Foaly's explanations, "Reiryoku? Spirit energy? What does that mean?"

"Well it's something like magic, but it's what Shinigami and Hollows use. All living creatures have some, it's what allows us to control our bodies and in the case of the People, magic. Since we use magic we automatically have enough reiryoku to see Shinigami and Hollows, but most humans don't have that much. Some are born with more than usual, and some develop it by being exposed to reiatsu—that's spirit energy that has been released or the pressure caused by a persons reiryoku. People's reiryoku can also grow through a near-death experience; if they spend time outside their bodies, especially if they move around a lot, that pretty much guarantees that they'll be able to see beings made of reishi afterward."

"So because Artemis died before he could see her. That's why he said that it was Koboi; he just didn't realize he was seeing a ghost."

"As interesting as this is what does it mean for Artemis?" Butler asked.

"It looks like she took him to Hueco Mundo, the Hollow's world. The Shinigami live in Soul Society, more specifically in a city called the Seireitei. Either way everything there is made of reishi so the clone couldn't come."

"So we can still save him!" Holly was ready to go.

"It's not that simple. This really should be up to the Shinigami. They won't like it if the People start meddling in their affairs. I can report it to them, but that's about all we can do legally." Foaly explained.

"Will they do anything about it?" Butler questioned.

"Probably not; Hollows devour souls every day, they won't see this as any different. Not to mention the fact that he shouldn't have been alive in the first place." Foaly admitted. "If I couldn't tell this reishi was from a Hollow I would have thought that they came to get him. If they find out someone who should be dead is still in the World of the Living, they won't be happy with us, we'd be lucky if taking him to Soul Society was all they did."

"How do I get to Hueco Mundo?" Holly asked, ignoring the possibility of making death gods angry.

"You can't! Look, aside from the fact that it's a world meant for dead people the LEP can't get involved. If you go, you go on your own. Think about how bad it is for the worlds of the Mud Men and the People to mix, mixing living and dead is even worse, do that and even Commander Kelp won't be able to save your career this time."

Holly looked the centaur in the eye and asked one more question, "What would Artemis do if it were us?"

 **Empty Tower, Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck met with Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez and Ulquiorra Schiffer in one of the many unoccupied towers of Las Noches. "I was able to talk her into coming without any trouble."

"Kurosaki did not interfere?" Ulquiorra asked, he stood with his back straight, hands loosely tucked into his pockets. His shaggy black hair was held down on the left by what appeared to be half a helmet made of bone with a broken off horn sprouting from it. From each of his emerald green eyes a line of the same color ran down his cheeks like tear marks.

"No, she wasn't even in Karakura." She hesitated before saying what she knew she had to tell them. "Something must have happened; she didn't know who I am."

"How did that happen?" Grimmjow asked glancing at Ulquiorra to see if he would react to the news, but his long-time rival's face was as impassive as ever. Grimmjow leaned on the wall in a careless posture. Where the other two kept their white uniforms fastened so that little skin showed he wore only his loose pants and a jacket which he left open to expose his chest and abdomen showing off the muscles as well as the jagged scar that ran down to the hole through his stomach. His unruly hair was the same shade of light blue as his eyes which each had a green mark on the outer corner. His mask remnant was a row of teeth on the outside of his right lower jawbone.

"I do not know what happened, or what we can do about it. Perhaps simply being here will help her memories to return," Nelliel said hopefully.

"If it was an accident, perhaps, but if this was done deliberately I doubt the solution would be so simple," Ulquiorra observed.

"She doesn't seem to have her powers at all. If she did she would have used them." Nelliel added.

"Maybe that's a good thing. Granz might get bored," Grimmjow considered.

"He is unlikely to give up so easily. The Shinigami probably confiscated the Shun Shun Rikka after what happened the last time she was here, and he knows that." Ulquiorra argued.

"At least they won't be easy for him to get to," Grimmjow muttered.

"Or for her, she may need them to recover her memories," Nelliel pointed out.

Grimmjow made a sound like a growl, "Well we can't just let him have them!"

"He will not be able to do anything with them until he has given Koboi what she wants. If she has them, perhaps she will be able to use them by then," Ulquiorra suggested.

Nelliel nodded, "Whatever happens it would be best if she has them."

Grimmjow groaned, "Does this mean we're volunteering for another mission we don't really want to succeed?"

 **Holding Cell, Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

The first thing Artemis was aware of when he awoke was that he had not dreamed. He lay still for a few moments letting his mind catch up with events. He had seen Koboi. It seemed certain that she was responsible for his situation. He had managed to cheat death so she probably had too.

He opened his eyes to see he was in a completely white room. A faint light entered from a barred window set high in the wall. Standing where the light met the floor was a young woman about his age wearing what appeared to be a school uniform. Her hair, the same sunset orange as the roses where he died, was braided and wound into a tight bun at the back of her head. She turned toward him and he saw her eyes were a strange silvery violet. "Who are you?" she asked in Japanese.

Glad he had mastered the language some time ago Artemis sat up realizing he had been laying on a large couch rather than a bed. He was also wearing a loose black shirt and pants instead of what he had been riding in. He stood to greet the young woman. "I am Fowl Artemis the Second," he said with a bow, making sure to put the family name first as in Japan.

She bowed in return, "Inoue Orihime."

"Do you know where we are, Inoue-san?" he asked using the Japanese suffix that was equivalent to mister, miss, or missus.

"No. I've only seen you, the woman who brought you in, and the one who brought me," she seemed to hesitate after the last as if she had something more to say, but wasn't sure she should.

"How long have you been here?"

"I don't know. The moon hasn't moved, and it's in the wrong phase. I think it might be a projection."

Artemis nodded thoughtfully, that made sense, if Koboi didn't want them to know where they were. "I wonder why they put us in the same room?" perhaps it meant that Koboi no longer had the resources for a large facility.

Inoue's eyes widened, "Maybe we've been abducted by aliens and they're taking us to an uninhabited planet to repopulate," her voice dropped to a whisper on the last word.

Artemis was too startled by this theory to laugh. "Why wouldn't they just colonize it themselves?"

"I guess you're right, but the ones who brought us here didn't look human."

So she didn't know Koboi. Or Koboi had delegated someone else to bring him here, but that seemed less likely as it would be difficult to get any staff when she was believed to be dead, although Inoue had made a distinction between who had brought her and who had brought him. It seemed Koboi was not working alone. "Do you know of anyone who might want to kidnap you?"

"No. I'm just a foster kid from Tokyo. There's nothing special about me."

"Maybe they want to use you to get to someone else…"

"What do you think I am? A manga character? I don't know anyone!"

"Well there must be some reason you're here."

"I don't know! What about you? Why are you here?"

"I was brought here by and old enemy, Koboi Opal. I have stopped her schemes before so she wants me out of the way as well as revenge on me."

"You do sound like a manga character!"

Artemis sighed, wondering if he should tell her about the fairies. This could get complicated.

 **Conference Room, Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

Koboi sat at the head of the long conference table. On her left side sat the Arrancars Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, and Ulquiorra Schiffer. On the right sat the Arrancar Szayelaporro Granz, and the Elf Rowan Long. She didn't trust most of them as far as she could throw them, but they all had their uses.

"Both the prisoners have been brought here successfully," Koboi announced, her cold dark eyes watching the others' reactions. Experience had taught her to suspect everyone as a possible traitor, and they might give her subtle clues as to who was really sympathetic to her enemies.

"Why did you put them in the same room? And you still have not captured Holly Short. You should know better than to underestimate her." Long spoke without permission, he just couldn't seem to accept her authority, she would have to watch him carefully.

"I do not need to explain myself to you. What about your mission?"

"I have secured my position in the Society of the Evening star. The archaeologist is working on the next clue, but she seems to be less motivated. I need Short." His blue eyes looked at her accusingly as if it was her fault Short had not been with Fowl, he kept his blond hair cropped short so he looked like a movie star trying to play a cop.

Koboi nodded, "She will come for Fowl, and then we will have her."

"What about Inoue? She is useless to me without her powers," Granz followed Long's bad example and spoke out of turn, flipping his pink hair back from his face.

"You do not need to worry about that until you have completed your end of the bargain." The only reason she had captured Inoue was because Granz would only agree to help her if he could study the girl. Koboi had no idea why, she was even more useless than most humans.

"Koboi-sama, perhaps we could help. The Soul Society has objects with high spiritual power in their research department. The girl's powers came from such objects." Nelliel was the only one who spoke to her with the proper respect, it would be safest to assume that was a way to cover up traitorous intentions, but Granz would not be satisfied until he knew he would get what he was here for.

"Very well, I assume those other two will be going with you."

"Of course I'm goin'! Any excuse to take out a few Shinigami," Jaegerjaquez spoke up.

"He is likely to cause more trouble than necessary if I do not accompany them," Schiffer added.

"Fine, just get it done." She turned to Long and Granz, "As for you two; focus on what you are supposed to be doing." With that Koboi left the room.

"Who does she think she is, ordering us around?" Long grumbled.

"I don't really care who she thinks she is as long as I can do my research," Granz stated, pushing his mask-remnant glasses back.

"I don't get why you're here anyway, Elf. What's this Society of yours?" Jaegerjaquez wanted to know.

"That is none of your concern; it is between me and Koboi. Now would someone open a Garganta so I can get back to it?" Nelliel raised a hand and tapped the air which seemed to part, forming a black hole with jagged edges which Long stepped through. It closed quickly behind him. Granz left as well to get back to his lab.

Schiffer rose, "I suppose we might as well get started."

"Well aren't you eager," Jaegerjaquez muttered.

"I simply see no reason to delay," Schiffer replied, pretending not to notice the sarcasm.

"Now boys, don't make me decide which of you to leave behind. We're all on the same side here," Nelliel interrupted them before they could really get going.

"That'll be the day. Ain't nobody here on anyone's side but their own," Jaegerjaquez quipped. For once no one argued with him.

 **Let me know what you think. What did you like? What didn't work as well? Anything to help me improve!**

 **Thanks and prayer, RAHbooks.**


	4. Chapter Three Search

**I'm having this weird problem where the formating I use when typing doesn't show up once I post the story. When it's just the different font size for the title I can live with that, but the dividing line I put between the notes and the story doesn't show up either. Hopefully using the location names to anounce a change of scene has kept that from being too confusing, but later I'm going to chage POV's at the same place and it will be easier for everyone to have that division. I'm trying the line of zeroes on this chapter to see if that makes any difference.**

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 **Chapter Three**

 **Search**

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 **Fowl Private Jet, en route to Japan**

Holly sat in the copilot's seat of the Fowl's Lear Jet wearing jeans and a green T-shirt Butler had kept at the manor for her in case she ever had to blend in when Artemis Senior was around. Because her LEP uniform and equipment all had trackers and self-destruct mechanisms built in she had left them at the manor with Foaly who would take them and the unoccupied clone to Haven. They had avoided speaking to any of Artemis' family before they left, they didn't know how to explain what had happened, it seemed better to wait until they had rescued Artemis and let him think of something.

"So how do you know Urahara?" Holly asked Butler. They were on their way to Karakura, Japan to meet Urahara Kisuke on Foaly's word that he could get them to Hueco Mundo. Butler had mentioned that he had met the man once.

"When Artemis was nearly six years old, my uncle who was his father's bodyguard decided I was getting too attached. Urahara contacted him asking for help so he sent me thinking it would be good for me to take some time away."

"So what did he need help with?" Holly was curious.

"He was helping an eighteen-year-old boy get away from his abusive parents, and he had also just rescued a three-year-old girl from a similar situation. He was worried one of the families would come looking for them. I don't know all the details but it seems at least one of their families was involved in something a lot bigger. I stayed with the kids until he set up identities for them and got the boy a job," He smiled remembering. "Sora got quite fond of that little girl. Started calling her his sister. I always meant to check up on them, but Artemis made that difficult, especially once his father went missing. I never seemed to have a chance."

Holly nodded understanding. "Well Urahara sounds like a good guy at least." She didn't mention that she would rather pass him up and get to Hueco Mundo through the Murderous Caves most people were afraid to set foot in. She wasn't entirely sure she could get to a world of the dead though them, and at the very least Urahara might have some useful information. Artemis was always reminding her that it was best to know as much about something as possible before acting.

"You should complete the Ritual before we leave. We don't know if this world has acorns, or a full moon for that matter." Butler pointed out. The Ritual was how fairies restored their magic when it was running low. On a full moon they took an acorn from an ancient oak by a bend in a river and planted it. It was possible to complete it without a full moon, but the magic would not be as powerful or stay in the fairy's system for as long. Whatever happened it would be best if Holly was "running hot" or full of magic before they arrived at Hueco Mundo.

After what seemed like forever they landed at Tokyo's international airport, and from there they took a bus to Karakura. The arrival at Urahara's seemed like an anticlimax.

"A candy shop? Are you sure this is the right place?" Holly had never doubted Butler before, but maybe all those injuries he had suffered through their previous adventures were starting to affect his brain. The shop was not even in good shape.

"This is it," Butler said confidently, striding forward. A boy and a girl who looked like they were in their early teens were sweeping just outside the door. "I am looking for Urahara-san," Butler stated in fluent Japanese.

The boy leaned on his broom and asked, "Oh yeah? So who are you?"

Holly was impressed. Most grown men were intimidated by Butler's height not to mention the bulk of muscles from his training at Madam Ko's Personal Protection Academy. True, the consequences of his fairy adventures had left him in worse shape than his age alone would account for, but he was still an impressive figure.

"Be nice, Jinta," the girl spoke up. She didn't seem frightened by Butler either. Turning to them she said "He's inside—somewhere." Butler entered without hesitation, Holly at his side. There was no one there.

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 **Twelfth Division, Seireitei, Soul Society**

Nelliel and Ulquiorra stayed hidden until they heard the alarm bell, then watched as the Shinigami all ran toward the Eleventh Division. Grimmjow's distraction was under way. They were right across the street from the Research and Development lab so they knew immediately when it was clear. They used Sonido to cross the street in a flash and stopped just outside the door to listen for anyone inside.

"How can I be expected to work with all this noise?" the Twelfth Division Captain was ranting.

Nelliel frowned, it would be better if no one knew they had been in the lab. Whether they killed the captain and whoever he was talking to, or just knocked them out the Shinigami would know someone had been after something in there, which would mean they would discover what had been taken sooner. The longer before that happened the better.

Nelliel turned to Ulquiorra, "You're the most familiar with her reiatsu so I'll get them out of there while you find the Shun Shun Rikka." He nodded, unlike Grimmjow she knew she could trust him not to leave a trail of reishi.

She ran into the building, destroyed the surveillance equipment and ran out with the captain and his lieutenant right behind her. Ulquiorra hid around a corner of the building until they were out of sight.

Locating the Shun Shun Rikka was simple. Their reiatsu was so different from all the other things in the lab that they were like a beacon. If Nelliel was wrong about it being easy for him to find because of his familiarity with them the Shinigami wouldn't even need to look at any surveillance footage to know they were gone. He wasn't surprised that the locked box opened easily. The Shinigami had underestimated her again. He slipped the small objects into his pocket and left the lab. He decided to take the long way back to Hueco Mundo; it wouldn't do for the Shinigami to realize there had been three Gargantas opened within the Seireitei when they had only seen two Arrancars. He walked to the outskirts of the Shinigami city looking for a cave.

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 **Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

Someone wearing a mask rolled in a trolley loaded with food and left without a word. None of the food looked very appetizing. It looked like some kind of fruit, but not any Artemis was familiar with. Inoue proved braver than he was and tried it first. "How is it?" He asked her.

"It doesn't really have a taste," she said thoughtfully. "At least that means it doesn't taste bad." Artemis was quickly learning that his cell mate tried to find the best in everything. He had to choke down his own food. There were two glasses of water as well; Artemis took a few sips from his before an idea occurred to him. He knelt and carefully set the glass on the floor.

"What are you doing?" Inoue asked sitting on the floor with the glass between them.

"Testing your alien theory," he watched as the ripples from moving the glass faded. The water was still. "Well, we do not seem to be moving."

"But if it is an alien spaceship it might have inertial dampeners," she pointed out as if that made perfect sense. Artemis didn't bother arguing, these wild stories were probably her way of coping. He looked up at the window.

"I wish we could tell whether or not that was real."

"It is," Inoue said simply.

"Earlier you said you thought it was a projection."

Inoue shook her head as if to clear it. "I don't know what to think! This is all just so strange. Maybe we're on another world already."

"That does not seem very likely," Artemis answered despite the fact that with Koboi involved anything was possible. "We have to get out of here," he announced as if the thought had just occurred to him. He had actually been considering their options since he woke up.

"How?"

"I have not gotten that far yet."

"So you haven't thought about what to do after either. What if there isn't anywhere we can go? There could be nothing but desert out there."

"Then they'll catch us and we will not be any worse off than we are now. If they wanted us dead they would not have brought us here alive."

"But what do they want with us? You said this Koboi person wanted revenge on you, but if that was all why didn't she just kill you?"

"Because that is not how she works. She does not just want me dead, she wants me beaten, she wants to prove that she is smarter than me."

"What about me? I get good grades because I study, not because I'm some kind of genius. I can't possibly be useful to her!"

"You aren't. You're here for me." A strange man dressed in white with chin-length pink hair and lens-less glasses that appeared to be made of bone stood in the doorway. Inoue cringed away from him despite the fact that he was too thin to look dangerous. "You'll be coming with me now. I'm afraid I can't promise to bring you back in one piece," he grinned wickedly and pushed his glasses up.

Artemis stood facing him, "I'm not letting you take her anywhere!"

"You don't get a say in the matter, Elf bait," the stranger replied calmly. The last two words stunned Artemis for a moment. He should have realized sooner, he wasn't the only one Koboi wanted revenge against.

The pink-haired man stepped into the room and easily shoved Artemis aside, then grabbed Inoue by the arm and hauled her to her feet. "Let me go!" she cried, pulling against him.

"Can't you put up a better fight than that? It's rather disappointing. I'm beginning to wonder if Aizen overstated your abilities."

Inoue froze at the name, "Aizen?" she whispered, frowning.

Artemis launched himself at the man from behind, trying to tackle him. The man stepped out of the way easily, taking Inoue with him. All Artemis accomplished was to upset the glass of water still on the floor. Before he could stand the man pulled Inoue out the door and closed it, leaving him to watch the puddle slowly spread.

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 **Well that's all for today. Thanks to Bored Kid 48 (sorry if I got that wrong, I didn't write it down before I deleted the message telling me) for being the first to follow and favorite this story! It's always good to know someone is enjoying something I wrote.**

 **Thanks and prayer,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	5. Chapter Four Allies

**Sorry this is late! My dad had to stay home from work last week and I didn't get a chance to get on the computer while he was off. I decided to go ahead and post it now rather than skipping a week and hopefully I will be able to post the next chapter on time. I wish I could tell you this won't happen again, but it probably will, my dad has to have some check ups the last week of September/fisrt week of October and I probably won't be able to post anything then. However since I know ahead of time I might post an extra chapter the week before. Or I will just do the same thing as this time and post it when I get a chance. Anyway, I hope this was worth waiting for.**

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 **Chapter Four**

 **Allies**

 **Karakura, Japan**

Holly and Butler looked around at the shelves of candy. There was no one else in sight. Holly walked up to one of the nearby shelves; it was stocked with boxes of chocolate shaped like a blob with arms and legs which appeared to be smiling. The box was labeled _Ambassador Seaweed_. "No wonder the place looks so bad."

"Excuse me, can I help you?" a voice asked.

Holly looked up and realized why the kids outside had not been frightened. The man who had stepped in from the back of the store was at least as tall as Butler.

"It has been a long time, Butler-san," the man said as he bowed.

Butler and Holly bowed in return, "Hello Tessai-san, this is my friend, Short Holly. We are here to see Urahara-san on urgent business."

Tessai frowned, "The boss is busy right now. What exactly do you need him for?"

Butler hesitated, he may have worked with these people before, but that had been a fairly straight forward job and this was anything but. Impatient Holly spoke up instead, "We need to get to Hueco Mundo to rescue our friend, Fowl Artemis, from an Arrancar, so if you can't help us just say so and we'll find another way."

Tessai nodded, "In that case, come with me." They followed him to the back of the store where he opened a trap door. All three climbed down the ladder, Tessai first, Holly last. When her feet touched the ground the elf turned around to see a desert landscape complete with mesas and a blue sky. If there were walls she couldn't see them. "Is this the part where I'm supposed to say 'it's bigger on the inside'?"

A blond man with a cane wearing a white and green striped hat, dark green shirt and pants, and a black coat with a white diamond pattern along the bottom was standing some distance away. He was talking to a boy who was wearing a white suit with a cape and a blue cross on the front. His dark hair was cut longer in the front than the back, swept to the right, and glasses sat in front of his dark blue eyes.

"All I'm saying is you shouldn't go alone. You know how dangerous it is." The blond man was saying.

"I can't tell Kurosaki! If he gets involved the Shinigami could find out what we're doing. You know what they would do if they found out she was involved again!" the boy answered.

"Hey, boss, we might have a solution over here!" Tessai called.

The blond man turned towards them. He smiled and waved when he saw Butler. "Hello, Butler-san! It's been a long time!" he squinted at Holly a moment, "When did you start hanging out with Elves?"

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 **Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

If Orihime had ever been so frightened before she couldn't remember. The strange pink-haired man dragged her through labyrinthine halls that were all the same plain white as the room she and Artemis had been in. Even if she managed to get away from him—and his iron-hard grip on her arm made that seem unlikely—she doubted she would be able to make it back to Artemis, let alone find a way out of this place.

Eventually they arrived at what could only have been a lab. There were counters and tables covered with surgical instruments, microscopes, vials, beakers, sample jars both filled and empty, and computers. He dragged her to an empty table. She took advantage of the moment he stopped to stomp on his foot and drive her elbow into his stomach as hard as she could, but he easily swung her up onto the table and quickly strapped her down despite her struggles. He pulled over a tray covered with scalpels, scissors and other instruments obviously meant for cutting. It was conspicuously missing any form of anesthetic.

"It's a shame you don't have your powers at the moment, but perhaps I can bring them out."

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Orihime cried, vainly straining against the straps that held her down.

"Oh, I'm sure you don't, but that doesn't matter. All you have to do is sit still. And try not to scream, it is rather irritating when a subject makes so much noise." He started to unbutton her blouse and she almost wished he was doing it for the reasons most men would, at least that she could understand. At least that she could survive. He picked up a scalpel and began lowering it towards her chest with a wide grin, and an eager glint in his eyes, clearly excited to to get started. He was going to dissect her! She wanted to yell for help, but knew there was no point, the only person in this place who cared was locked in a room far away. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the cut.

She heard the door open, and someone walk in. She opened her eyes in surprise, hardly daring to breathe the scalpel was so close to her skin. "What are you doing here? Can't you see I'm in the middle of something?" the scientist demanded, turning to see who had dared to invade his lab.

"You said she was useless to you without the Shun Shun Rikka," a cold monotone voice answered. Orihime thought she recognized it, but the straps wouldn't allow her to turn and see who spoke.

"I was under the impression that you, Nel, and Grimmjow were going to correct that."

"I came to inform you that our mission was unsuccessful."

"Do you really expect me to believe that?"

"The Shinigami do not make a habit of allowing Arrancars in and out of the Soul Society as we please. Since the war with Aizen they have devised more effective means of keeping us out."

There was that name again, sending shivers through her even with the real danger she was already in. How could it disturb her so much when she didn't even know who he was?

"In any case you have not finished your own task. Your curiosity can wait until that is done. Retrieving what you need will be simple once Koboi's plans are complete."

Her captor seemed to consider his options for a moment. "Fine. You take her back, I have other things to do." He tossed the scalpel back onto the tray and undid the straps before walking to one of the other counters.

Orihime sat up and quickly buttoned her blouse again before she slid off the table and faced the man by the door. For a moment she thought those green eyes were familiar, but he turned and walked out clearly expecting her to follow him before she could be sure. He silently led her back down what she assumed were the same hallways without touching her. In fact he kept his hands in his pockets, which seemed like a contradiction to his ramrod-straight posture.

When they got to the room he pressed a panel on the wall to open the door. As she stepped in she saw that the trolley was gone. Artemis had been sitting on the couch, but stood when he saw her. After the door closed behind her he asked, "Are you all right?" All the terror of the last few minutes caught up to her at once and she started sobbing uncontrollably. Without another word Artemis took her hand, guided her to the couch and sat next to her. He didn't ask any more questions, he just held her hand and let her cry. For the first time she could remember someone was there for her.

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 **Karakura, Japan**

When Urahara Kisuke asked you to start from the beginning he really meant the beginning. The blond man wasn't satisfied until they had told him the whole story of their adventures with Artemis from when they began to the current situation. The teenage boy, Ishida Uryu, listened without a word. Finally Urahara seemed to have all the information he wanted.

"Here's the problem: if I just open a Garganta and send you through right this minute you're gonna die," he announced frankly.

"What do you expect us to do?" Holly demanded.

"Calm down, he knows what he's doing," Butler tried to reassure her, but the strain in his voice wasn't very convincing.

Urahara lifted a folded fan as if her were holding up a finger, "I didn't say I wouldn't help. First though, Butler-san, I'm afraid you won't be able to go at all. Even if you were in top physical condition your spirit energy is that of an average human. You could never survive in Hueco Mundo."

Butler struggled not to raise his voice. "Protecting Artemis is my responsibility. I cannot stay here and trust just anyone to save him!"

"Ah, but you won't, you'll be trusting your pretty little friend here," he pointed the fan at Holly.

"Fine then, let's go," Holly said before Butler could object.

Urahara rapped her on the head with his fan. "Hold your horses. I didn't say you could go right now."

"Why not?" Holly snapped, rubbing the top of her head.

"You're running low on magic, and you can't complete the Ritual there. Even if you were running hot, you don't know how many Hollows or Arrancars you'll have to fight to get to your friend, not to mention getting him out. You won't do him any good if you run out of magic before you even get to the rescuing bit."

"I've made it out of plenty of tight situations when I was running low."

"Are you willing to risk your friend's life on your luck?" Holly was silent. She knew their luck had to be running out, but she didn't know what else to do. Seeing she wasn't going to answer Urahara started talking again, "Fortunately magic isn't all that different from reiatsu. In fact Quincy like Ishida-san here are descendants of humans and fairies who…" he made a show of opening the fan to hide his mouth and whispered "interbred."

Holly glanced at the teenager. She knew fairies and humans had lived together over ten thousand years ago, but she had never thought about the possibility of them having children together, let alone descendants that were still alive. "Interesting bit of trivia, but what difference does it make?"

"Quincy create bows and arrows made of reishi by drawing it from the environment around them. This is easier in places like Hueco Mundo and Soul Society where everything is made of reishi. The Quincy's origins indicate that it's possible for a fairy to learn that skill. If you train with Ishida-san to accomplish that, you might stand a chance of saving your friend."

Holly considered, it was likely that Koboi would keep Artemis alive knowing she would come for him. If that wasn't her plan he was dead already and it wouldn't make a difference. Either way Koboi wouldn't expect her to show up with a power such as Urahara described. She looked at the Quincy, "Would you be willing to help me learn?"

"A friend of mine was also taken by an Arrancar. Urahara-san is refusing to open a Garganta for me to go after her on my own. The sooner you learn, the sooner I can save her."

Holly turned back to Butler, "What do you think?" she asked as if she had not already made up her mind.

"I think it sounds like Artemis' best chance."

Holly nodded, and then turned to Ishida, "So, when do we get started?"

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 **Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

When Orihime had calmed down she explained what had happened to Artemis. Even he shuddered at the thought of what could have happened to her. "What do you think these Shun Shun Rikka are?" he asked.

"I don't know, and I don't want to know. I'm just glad they didn't have them."

"They seem determined to get them. I wish I knew what Koboi is planning."

"We can't do anything about it from here anyway."

Artemis nodded understanding her point, but he was nowhere near ready to just sit back and accept their fate, not after what they had tried to do to Orihime.

"What did he mean when he called you 'Elf bait'?" Orihime asked.

He sighed; it was starting to look like he would have to tell her everything. "They want to use me to trap my friend Holly Short."

"She's an elf?" She sounded completely serious.

"Yes. She's helped me defeat Koboi before. There have been other enemies as well, but none of them keep coming back like she does."

Orihime nodded, either she was completely accepting him at his word or she thought he was so crazy it would be dangerous to argue with him. "Will she come looking for you?"

"Yes. Koboi probably left something behind to let her know where to look. She'll want us both to know she won."

"You've beaten her before though, so you friend will know what to do."

"Not exactly. I'm the one who usually comes up with the plans. Holly prefers action, without a plan she's likely to charge right in." He stood and something caught his eye by the door. "What is that?"

Orihime stood to see, walked to the door and scooped something up. She turned to Artemis and opened her outstretched hand so he could see. Two hairpins, obviously made for a child with the shape of blue six-petaled flowers on one end. "If the door had a lock we could pick it," she said, fastening them onto her collar.

Artemis suddenly realized an advantage he had over looked. Orihime had seen the other side of the door. "It doesn't lock?"

"Not that I can tell, but I think it only opens from the outside. There's a panel on the wall."

"Is there a guard?"

"No. What are you thinking?"

Artemis started pacing around the room playing Beethoven's Ninth Symphony in his head as he planned. "I'm thinking we're going to get out of here."

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 **So, Artemis likes to play music in his head when he's playing and it's usually something classical and I wanted to use that. Originally Beethoven's Ninth was a place holder until I could think of somthing appropriate, for some reason it was the first thing that came to mind. Then my sister reminded me it was "Ode to Joy" she thought it was funny and it makes some sense since they will be happy when they escape so I ended up keeping it. Anyway, escape is the next chapter, so stick around!**

 **Thanks and prayer,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	6. Chapter Five Escape

**This one is later than I thought it would be, but at least it's only been a week since the last chapter. Maybe I will end up making Sunday the day to update.**

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 **Chapter Five**

 **Escape**

 **Karakura, Japan**

Uryu knew Holly was trying to concentrate, but all she had managed so far was to look constipated. "Are you sure there's reishi in the air?"

"Of course. If you can learn to use it here then using the same amount of effort while in Hueco Mundo will result in making your attacks stronger," he didn't mention that the Hollows would be stronger for the same reasons, she probably figured that out on her own.

"Well, I'm getting nothing so far." She sounded as impatient as he felt.

"Maybe it would be easier if you didn't have magic in your system."

She looked at him like he was crazy. "The People are born with magic. We have it all our lives. If anything that should make this easier."

Butler, who had been watching silently, spoke up, "Maybe that's the problem. Quincys are taught to take it from outside themselves, but you're used to already having it inside you. If you were drained then trying to fill the absence might do the trick."

Holly shot a glare at the large man. Obviously she didn't like the idea of being vulnerable without her magic. Good, one more reason for her to master this technique. Well, they probably didn't have time for her to really master it, but if she learned the basics, at least, that might be enough. She sighed, "Fine we might as well try it. Do either of you have something sharp I can use? A thumbtack or a needle is best."

Uryu reached into a pocket of his cape and pulled out his small portable sewing kit. He opened it and pulled out a needle, offering it to her. She eyed his clothes suspiciously as she took it. "Did you make that get up yourself?"

Uryu pushed his glasses back so that they caught the light, "Of course, I wear the this uniform with the pride of the Quincy!"

Holly stuck the needle into her left index finger and left it there as blue sparks danced around it. "I don't care how many Quincy techniques you teach me, you are never getting me into one of those."

Uryu wasn't sure how to respond to that. He was used to being made fun of for the fact that he was a guy who sewed and was better at making clothes for girls than boys, but only Kurosaki had ever dared directly insult the Quincy uniform. When he said something stupid Uryu just yelled at him, usually getting close enough to his face to make them both uncomfortable. He couldn't bring himself to use that method on a girl who was half his height, even if she did claim to be decades older than him.

When the sparks stopped Holly pulled the needle out of her finger and wiped the dot of blood away with her thumb as she handed it back to him. He pulled his first aid kit from another pocket in his cape and cleaned the needle with an alcohol wipe before returning it to his sewing kit. "Would you like a bandage?" he asked.

Holly held up her finger, he could barely tell where the needle had been, "I know I'm short, but do I really look five years old to you?" She had a point, despite her size her figure was obviously adult. He returned the first aid kit to its pocket. "Are you ready to try again?" she nodded. "You know what it should feel like. You just need to find it in the air instead of in you."

"You make it sound so easy," she muttered, but she closed her eyes. She held out her left hand, ready to form a bow there. He could feel her reaching out, searching. "I think I've got something," she said finally.

"Good. Now just focus on what you want it to do," she probably knew that already, it was getting reishi out of the air she didn't know how to do. Sparks started showing up around her hand. Slowly they came together to form the shape of a bow. She opened her eyes.

"I did it!" she cried triumphantly with a grin.

Uryu nodded, smiling, "Now we just have to work on your speed and aim."

Holly smiled again and drew back the bow, slowly forming an arrow as she did. She nodded to Butler who picked up a rock and threw it high into the air. She fired the arrow, hitting the rock just before it started to fall. "I don't think aim is going to be a problem."

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 **Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

The food trolley was in the middle of the room, right in front of the door. Artemis stood behind it, gripping the handles, ready. Orihime was pressed against the wall by the door, hardly daring to breath.

The door opened and the masked person who brought and removed the trolley walked in. Artemis shoved the trolley with all his strength. It ran right into the masked man and pinned him to the wall on the other side of the hall.

Orihime sprung out the door and ran down the hall with no hesitation, going the opposite direction from where the mad scientist had taken her. Artemis was right behind her.

They kept running until they came to an intersection. Orihime only hesitated a moment before picking a direction at random. They kept on like that, not really knowing where they were going. Suddenly Orihime grabbed Artemis' hand pulling him against the wall next to her. A moment later he heard footsteps. He heard Orihime whispering, "Don't see us" over and over like a mantra. He closed his eyes as if he could will himself to be invisible. He heard the footsteps grow closer until they were right in front of them, then fade away as they passed until they were inaudible. Artemis opened his eyes and looked at his companion. She looked as surprised as he was. "Whoever that was should have seen us," he whispered.

She nodded, "We should keep going," they started out again, a bit more cautiously. Eventually Artemis realized they were heading down whenever possible. That made sense in a way. The door out wouldn't be on the top floor, but it wouldn't be in the basement either, and they didn't know what floor they had been on to begin with.

They kept going until the hall opened out into a large room. They ran across it, but stopped short when they came to the wall, there were no doors to be seen. Orihime slapped the wall in frustration. A low rumbling started and the wall opened onto a desert landscape. Without stopping to question the odds they ran into the night.

Fueled by adrenaline, they didn't know how long they ran before collapsing onto the white sand. The sky was black apart from the pale light of the same crescent moon they had seen from the window.

After he caught his breath Artemis sat up to look back at where they had come from. It was massive. The center of the building was a dome surrounded by walls in which ten towers were set. He couldn't even tell how far they were from it, there was nothing to compare it to but the sparse, small, dead trees scattered across the desert.

Orihime sat up next o him. A few strands of sunset hair had come loose during the rush and Artemis found himself wondering how long it was. "What now?" she whispered.

"I suppose we keep moving with that building to our backs and hope that sooner or later we meet someone who can tell us where we are and where we should go." It wasn't much of a plan he knew, but he hadn't expected to find nothing but desert when they got out. He should have known Koboi would need somewhere remote to hide. He stood and offered a hand to help Orihime to her feet. As she let him help her up he said "We should find shelter before the sun comes up. It will be easier to travel at night through a desert, and we will need cover during the day to hide from the sun and Koboi." Orihime nodded and they walked into the desert together.

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 **Conference room, Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

"They escaped! Through the front door! You're all useless!" Koboi screeched at the collection of Arrancars seated around the table.

"I just want to point out that keeping them here was not my responsibility," Granz said, pushing his glasses up.

"Shut up! I didn't give you permission to speak!"

"Koboi-sama, perhaps we can find them," Nel volunteered.

"After you failed to get the Shun Shun Rikka? As if I could trust you with something so much more important!"

"There ain't gonna be any Shinigami this time," Grimmjow pointed out, shooting an accusing glare at Ulquiorra.

"Whatever, I just want them back!" Koboi stormed out of the room.

Granz started for the door as well, "To think you three were higher ranked than me under Aizen. Try not to screw this one up."

Nel waited until the door had closed and Granz's spirit energy faded down the hall. She stood and walked around the table to look Ulquiorra in the eye. "What did you do?"

"Granz was going to start his experiments. I delayed him."

"By telling him we didn't get the Shun Shun Rikka. Where are they?"

"Probably out in the desert considering I dropped them in the prisoner's room and they were gone when we found it empty."

"Damn it, Schiffer! You can't keep acting on your own like that, you're going to get all three of us caught!"

"I thought cussin' at him was my job," Grimmjow muttered. It kind of took the fun out of it if Nel was doing it too.

"Well we can't keep failing every mission she sends us on!"

"Maybe you should stop volunteering us for them then," the blue-haired Arrancar retorted.

Nel sighed and sank into a chair. "We don't have much choice. If anyone else catches them…" she didn't have to finish the sentence.

"How'd I get myself into this?" Grimmjow grumbled.

"We never asked you to help," Ulquiorra pointed out.

"I didn't ask either of you for help. We're all in this mess because we wanted to be," Nel added

"What the hell were we thinking?" Grimmjow griped again.

"That we all owe that girl our lives." Nel stood, "Now let's go find her."

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 **Do you think the escape made sense? I know the front door was conviniently unguarded, but I figured Koboi is arrogant enough not to think it was necesary to guard anything. She was probably also counting on Artemis not having any information about where he is. Anyway, let me know what you think.**

 **Thanks and prayer,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	7. Chapter Six Learning

**I am so sorry about how long it's been since I have updated! The comupter got a virus, then my dad was off work for a week, then we got a dog, so a bunch of stuff going on that didn't leave me much chance for this. Anyway here it is now, hope it's worth it.**

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 **Chapter Six**

 **Learning**

 **Karakura, Japan**

"How did Urahara know I am an elf?" Holly asked, firing another arrow. Now that she had a feel for pulling reishi from the air she was working on doing so more quickly. She dissipated her bow after each shot, not because she couldn't maintain it, but so that she could practice forming it. Before they left for Hueco Mundo she needed to be able to use it at a moment's notice.

In answer to her question Ishida said, "He's a Shinigami. He founded their Research and Development department. It seems like he knows something about everything. You get used to it once you've known him for a while."

Talking while training was helping Holly learn to gather reishi without having to concentrate so hard. Butler had gone upstairs to talk to Urahara while Tessai looked after the shop. That left Ishida for her to get information from. As Artemis was always reminding her knowledge is power. "How did he end up running a ramshackle candy shop in the World of the Living?"

"Another Shinigami named Aizen Sosuke performed illegal experiments and framed him for it. Urahara escaped and saved the test subjects with help from Tessai and another friend of his."

"Was Aizen ever caught?" was it her imagination or were her arrows lasting longer?

"Yes. He eventually revealed himself as a traitor. He raised an army of Arrancars and kidnapped my friend, Inoue Orihime, then attacked the Soul Society. He lost, Urahara sealed his powers away and he was sentenced to twenty-thousand years in prison."

"Somehow I doubt he's going to wait for his parole to come up;" Holly muttered, firing again.

"Shinigami can live for millennia, but you're right. Especially since Inoue has gone missing again."

"You're trying to rescue the same girl?"

"Yes. From what you say she disappeared about the same time as your friend."

"What does this guy want with her anyway?"

"I don't know, he never gave a straight answer to that. At least not one we could be sure was true."

"But you managed to rescue her before?" the arrows were definitely lasting longer.

"Yes, five of us went after her, myself, three Shinigami, and a Fullbringer."

Holly didn't bother asking what a Fullbringer was. She didn't care if he had help from a mad man with a box. It was good to know she was going with someone who had been there before, even if they were going with less than half the help.

"It's not Aizen," a female voice announced. Holly turned to see a dark skinned woman wearing an orange jacket and skin tight black pants with her purple hair pulled back in a ponytail walking toward them from the ladder. "I just checked. He's still in his cell."

Ishida bowed, "Short-san, this is Urahara's friend Shihoin Yoruichi ."

Holly bowed in greeting then asked, "Does that mean Koboi took them both?"

"Most likely. It seems too much of a coincidence that they went missing at the same time for them not to be connected."

"So now what?" Ishida wondered.

"Now you two take a break from training. Come upstairs, eat, and try to get some sleep." She turned her yellow cat-like eyes on Holly, "Then tomorrow we'll see how you do against real Hollows."

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 **Desert, Hueco Mundo**

Orihime couldn't tell how long they had been walking, it seemed like hours, but the moon hung stationary in the black sky making it impossible to tell for sure. She needed to redo her braid, but she didn't want to take her hair down in front of Artemis. When she had first gotten out of the hospital she left it loose, but the length and strange color attracted stares which made her uncomfortable. Braiding and pinning it up made it less noticeable. She couldn't think of Artemis as anything but a friend after all they had been through together in just the short time since they met, but that was just another reason not to want him staring.

Artemis stopped when their path took them to one of the trees. He looked at it a moment then touched one of the branches. "This isn't wood. It isn't even petrified, it's crystal." Orihime didn't like the way he was looking at it, it reminded her of the way the pink-haired man had looked at her like he couldn't wait to take her apart. Artemis seemed less eager, but he was only studying a tree.

"We should go. There's nowhere to hide out here."

"Don't you realize what this means? You were right, we're on another world."

"What difference does it make if they catch us?"

"But that wasn't the only thing you knew. You said the moon we could see from the window was real, and there it is. You knew where the door was, and you just happened to hit the panel to open it even though it blended perfectly with the wall," that curious studying stare was turned on her now.

"What are you saying?" she whispered.

"You have been here before haven't you?"

"What? No!"

"I tell you an elf is going to try to rescue me and you think I won't believe you when you tell me how you know this place?"

"I don't know it!"

"Then how did you know the way out?"

"I don't know! I wasn't thinking about it!" She realized she was starting to cry and tried to hold the tears back. "Maybe I have been here before, but I don't remember," she whispered to keep her voice under control.

Understanding dawned in Artemis' eyes. "You don't remember." It didn't sound like a question.

"Do you remember the Great Techno-Crash?" she asked. He nodded. "I don't, or anything before it. I woke up in the hospital a few days after. They even had to tell me my name and they only knew that much because I had a student I.D. They never found anything on my family and no one came looking for me. I've been in and out of foster homes since. No one wants to keep me very long because they know I'll be old enough to move out on my own soon." She realized that at some point the tears had escaped and slid down her cheeks, but at least she wasn't sobbing out of control. She turned her face away and started walking, hearing him fall into step behind her.

They weren't sure how long it was before they came to a large bowl-shaped valley lined with caves. They found a path down and slipped into the first cave they came to. "None of this is natural, the shapes are too perfect. This was carved out." Artemis traced what appeared to be claw marks on the wall, "And not by humans."

"Whatever did make it must be huge," Orihime said looking up at the ceiling which seemed impossibly tall.

"Well there aren't any signs that anyone—or anything—has been here for a long time. We should stay here, for now at least," he sat on the floor against the wall. "Of course if we are on another world, perhaps we should wait here. It isn't as if we know where we are going."

Orihime sat against the wall a few feet away from him. "So we just hope that your friend finds us before Koboi does?"

"I don't even know if Holly can get here, but she won't give up easily. If there is a way—and there must be or we wouldn't be here—she'll find it."

"I've never been able to trust anyone like that. Not that I can remember anyway."

Artemis looked at her, his mismatched blue and hazel eyes seeming to consider something. "Do you know why you lost your memories?"

"They said it was a combination of shock and trauma. No one actually said it but I'm pretty sure they thought I saw my family get blown up."

"What do you think?"

She recognized the psychiatrists method of questioning but he seemed to actually be concerned for her so she answered, "I don't know. I have this dream, the same one every night. Two monsters are fighting and when the one wins it doesn't stop, it just literally rips the other one apart. I try to run to him and he's reaching for me, but I always wake up before I get there." It was the most basic version of the dream she could give him.

"Do you know who he is?"

"No, if I see his face I don't remember when I'm awake. I just know I don't want him to die."

"What about the other one?"

"I don't know. I think he was someone I cared about or admired, then found out I shouldn't. Maybe seeing them as monsters is just some weird translation my brain makes."

"What do you mean?"

"Well maybe I thought the one I wanted to help was a monster, but I was wrong, and the one I liked before turned out to be a monster."

"You don't think you might be over analyzing it?"

She shrugged, "They couldn't have actually been like that."

Artemis looked up at the claw marks on the wall and said nothing.

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 **The Valley's Edge, Hueco Mundo**

"Well that was easy, they don't even know how to hide their spirit energy," Grimmjow commented looking down at the cave their quarry was in.

"That's him your sensing. She is hiding, but I don't think she knows it. She just doesn't want to be found," Nel pointed out.

"So now what?"

"We keep an eye on them."

"That's it?"

"If we take them back Granz will want to dissect them right way and at this point they have no reason to trust us," Ulquiorra pointed out.

"She didn't escape last time! Why is she causing so much trouble now?" Grimmjow complained.

"This time she did not have anything to lose. The Shinigami saw to the that." Ulquiorra reminded him.

"Well we might as well take shifts to rest. Only one of us has to be watching to know when they leave." Nel decided. She and Grimmjow settled onto the sand assuming Ulquiorra would take the first watch. If he minded, he didn't say.

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 **Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

"You let those three go after them? And you expect them to come back?" Rowan struggled to keep his voice even. He knew he couldn't afford to make Koboi angry but for someone who was supposed to be a genius she could be really stupid sometimes.

"Did you expect me to go after them myself? Granz is useless with this sort of thing. Those two are probably going to die out there anyway. What about your project?"

"I managed to get her going again. I promised her she will get what she wants when she finds it."

"Short will still come for Fowl so you'll have her soon enough. I assume you will be killing the archaeologist once she's filled her role."

"Of course. But what are you planning to do with these Arrancars? They seem like a problem."

"That is for me to deal with." In other words she didn't have a plan. It looked like he would have to deal with them himself.

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 **Well I guess that's it for today. Let me know what you think.**

 **Thanks and prayer,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	8. Chapter Seven Preparations

**Yay! I acutually got a chapter up before a whole month went by! Well I don't really have anything to say except that I hope ya'll enjoy it.**

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 **Chapter Seven**

 **Preparations**

 **Karakura, Japan**

Holly stood on a roof next to Yoruichi, "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"We have to be sure you can at least handle the lowest-level Hollows before we let you go to Hueco Mundo," the taller woman replied.

"I understand that, but Hollow bait? Are you sure Ishida should be messing with that?" the Quincy was going to actually try to attract Hollows for this "training".

"No one is expecting you to take out every Hollow that shows up, but if you manage to destroy several of them not only will we know you can survive Hueco Mundo, but you may also improve."

Holly sighed, "What I'm mostly worried about is being seen. If I can shield using reishi I haven't figured out how yet."

Yoruichi nodded, "Think about how long Quincy have been around without attracting attention from ordinary humans. I'm sure there is a way for you to hide, but you won't need it to rescue your friend. Perhaps you can learn after. In the meantime Tessai's barrier will keep things from getting out of hand." The large man was apparently a master of "kido" the Shinigami version of magic, and was using it to block off this sparsely inhabited area as a safety precaution. The idea was to let the Hollows through, but not humans who might otherwise get caught in the crossfire.

Several dark spots appeared against the sky. Holly started firing arrows before they were close enough to see clearly. Every one hit. This was going to be easier than she had thought. Except that not all of them were flying. While she focused on the hollows in the air at least as many approached from the ground. One scaled the building and grabbed for her leg. "D'arvitt!" Holly cursed, jumping back and shooting it. They suddenly seemed to be everywhere. "How do they move so fast?" her years of training in the LEP helped her to stay relatively calm. Yoruichi was behind her fighting off any that tried to take her by surprise so she focused on the ones she could see. They were going down with one shot as long as she hit the white bone masks in place of their faces. The trick was remembering to aim for that, and that theses were supposed to be kill shots, not the stuns she was used to.

She shot down what she thought was the last one, only to have another leap at her from behind it. It threw her to the ground, breaking her concentration and causing her bow to disappear. The thing pressed it's faceless mask close to her, and she felt her claustrophobia kicking in. She reached up a hand and pushed, but it was too large for the small force she exerted to move. She closed her eyes and concentrated letting the reishi build around her hand, then released it explosively, blowing the hollow off of her. She immediately rolled to her feet already forming a new bow. It took her a few moments of looking around in confusion to realize there were no more Hollows.

She heard clapping behind her and turned to see Urahara (who was the one clapping) Yoruichi, Ishida, Tessai and Butler lined up on the edge of the roof. "Well done," Yoruichi said with a smile.

"Looks like you can handle it," Urahara added.

"As if there was ever a doubt," Butler said beaming as if he had just seen his little sister master a new technique.

"So will you open a Garganta for us now?" Ishida asked, getting straight to the point.

"Urahara nodded, "It will take a few hours so you two get some rest. The real challenge is just about to start."

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 **Society of the Evening Star Base**

Rowan Long moved purposefully through the dim corridors. He may have been the shortest member of the Society of the Evening Star, but that had not stopped him from taking over when his predecessor had been captured by their enemies the Knights of the Dawn. If he had not stepped in the Society would probably have ceased to exist.

He came to the door of the deepest room in their fortress. For a moment he considered simply barging in, he was the leader after all, but the truth was he knew she was far more dangerous than he would ever be. This Arrancar was so dangerous she wasn't even welcome in Hueco Mundo anymore, not that the others could do much about it if she had wanted to stay after Aizen's defeat. He didn't know why she had chosen to leave her home or join the Society, he was too glad she wasn't an enemy to ask. He knocked.

"Who is there?" a deceptively pleasant voice asked.

"Rowan Long," he announced himself.

The door opened and a woman between five and six feet tall stood before him. She was dressed modestly in a black dress with red embroidery of flames around the hem and waist. It clung flatteringly to her figure as it fell almost to the floor. Her hair was red with traces of oranges, yellows and even a few strands of blue, the colors of fire. Her mask remnant was in the shape of an eastern dragon, the tip of the tail at the center of her left cheek, snakelike body curling around to the head just behind and beneath her eye with a flame shape emerging from the open jaws. Her intense coal black eyes were focused down on the elf.

"What do you want?" Kasai Hono demanded coldly.

"Three of Koboi's Arrancars seem to be a problem," he answered, keeping eye contact. "They let her prisoners escape. I want the Arrancars eliminated and the prisoners brought here."

She already knew who the prisoners were, Rowan had thought it wise to keep her in the loop regarding her home world. She only had one question, "Who are the Arrancars?"

"Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, and Ulquiorra Schiffer."

She smiled, "This will be easy."

 **Abandoned Caves, Hueco Mundo**

Orihime woke up to see Artemis sitting in the cave's entrance. She joined him, noticing that the sky looked exactly the same as when they had first entered.

Artemis noticed her upward gaze and commented, "Either we slept all day or it is always dark here." He motioned to a pile of the white, round fruit they had been eating since they arrived in this strange world, "Are you hungry? I already had some."

Orihime picked one off the top of the pile wondering where he had found them. "Thank you," she said, and took a bite.

"Don't thank me. They were there when I woke up."

Orihime swallowed and lowered the rest of the fruit, "Who…"

Artemis shrugged, "Your guess is as good as mine."

Orihime finished eating in silence. It seemed someone was helping them, but why didn't they want to be seen?

Once she was finished eating Artemis spoke up again. "Perhaps we should explore the other caves. We might find something useful." Orihime nodded, even if they didn't find anything it was better than sitting in the same cave all day. Besides it would be an advantage to be familiar with the area if Koboi found them here.

It was slow going. The caves were large, and there were hundreds of them. Despite the signs that they had once been inhabited, there was almost nothing left. After a few hours Orihime noticed Artemis placing a hand on his forehead as if he had a headache when he thought she wasn't looking."I wonder where whoever or whatever lived here before went," she said to distract herself from wondering what was wrong with Artemis.

"I don't know. There aren't any bodies, I haven't seen any sight of a fight, at least not with any weapons I'm familiar with. threr are a few collapsed caves of course, but that may be natural. Perhaps they are migratory and will eventually return." He winced and raised his hand again, this time not caring that she was looking right at him.

"Are you all right?"

"It's only a headache," he looked more concerned than he should be for just a headache.

"The strange thing about this place is that we haven't seen any signs of kids. No toys, no drawings on the wall, it's as if there weren't any." This had been bothering her for a while.

"If these were made by some kind of animal there might not be anything special for the young ones."

"Maybe, but I don't think it was animals."

"Why do you think that?"

"I don't know, it just doesn't feel right."

Artemis leaned against the cave wall, arms folded across his chest, that studying look on his face again. "Could this be something you knew before your memory loss?"

She shrugged, "Like you said, ever since I got here I've known things I couldn't if I hadn't been here before."

"Did that ever happen before?"

"No. my school didn't even seem familiar, but the student I.D. I had when they found me said it was the same one. I think the doctors hoped sending me back there would help me remember, but it didn't."

Artemis took a deep breath as if preparing to break bad news. "The People—you would call them fairies—have avoided being found by humans for centuries because they are technologically advanced. Part of their technology is the ability to mind wipe people. They can literally erase the memories of anyone who sees them. They usually only take a few minutes, just enough to make sure people don't know they saw them."

"They were the aliens people saw after the Techno-Crash! It affected them too!" Orihime said excitedly.

"Yes, in fact it started with them, but you are missing the point. They usually only erase a few minutes, but they can take more. They can erase a person's entire life. I think you have been here before and they or someone with similar technology did not want you to know." He was silent for a few moments to let her process his words. "Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Orihime nodded, suddenly afraid, "You're saying someone did this to me."

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 **Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

Koboi walked into Granz's lab without bothering to knock. "Is it ready?" she snapped.

"I believe so, but it is difficult to tell without a test subject," he replied, flipping his hair in irritation.

"Well then go get a test subject!"

"I don't do field work. Send one of the others."

"They haven't come back yet."

"Now there's a surprise," he muttered sarcastically. "It doesn't matter, the environment in Hueco Mundo would kill a normal human anyway."

"Then take it to Long's Society and let them test it. I'm sure he can find a few humans for you to use."

He bowed, "Of course, Koboi-sama. I shall begin preparations immediately."

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 **Edge of the Valley, Hueco Mundo**

"What was that about not acting on your own?" Grimmjow growled at Nel.

"Well I wasn't going to let them starve! Even if she remembered she wouldn't know where to look."

"So why did you just leave it then? Why didn't you just walk in and say 'Hey kids, I'm Nel! Ya hungry'?" he demanded.

"He has a point. You might as well have been open about helping them." Grimmjow was so surprised he didn't know what to say. Schiffer was agreeing with him?

Nel was surprised too, but not speechless. "I didn't see either of you volunteering."

"That does not explain the reason for your secrecy," Ulquiorra noted.

"I'm not sure about the boy. He is a criminal to humans and fairies alike." She admitted. "I want to watch him a while longer. Until he proves his true nature one way or the other."

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 **That's all folks! Let me know what you think.**

 **Thanks and prayers,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	9. Chapter Eight Unexpected

**Here's then next chapter. Hope you like it.**

 **Chapter Eight**

 **Unexpected**

 **Karakura, Japan**

Holly had been expecting something like a door, but the Garganta looked more like a jagged-edged hole in the air. She could see nothing but darkness behind it. Urahara was explaining the danger within it.

"There is nothing but reishi between this opening and where it comes through in Hueco Mundo. You have to control that reishi and focus it into a path to walk on. It works the same way you use it to make a bow, but if you aren't sure you can apply that to this stay behind Ishida, he's done this before and should be able to make a path you can both use." Ishida nodded, confirming he was confident he could do just that. Holly decided to make her own path anyway, just for the practice of controlling reishi.

Urahara pulled a black cylindrical object with a red button on one end out of his pocket. "When you're ready to come back press the button and this will open a Garganta for you." Holly and Ishida both reached for it at the same time, then pulled back. Holly suspected they were thinking the same thing. Neither of them wanted to take the chance the other would take off and leave them stranded if they found one of their friends before the other.

"Neither of us comes back until we find both of them," Holly said firmly, looking the Quincy in the eye.

"Of course not. On my honor as a Quincy!" It had not taken Holly long to realize how seriously Ishida took his Quincy honor so this time she had no hesitation in letting him take the device.

Butler took her aside for a private good bye. He placed a large hand on her shoulder, "I know you can do this. Don't go after Koboi. From what Urahara tells me Arrancars are a far cry from the ordinary Hollows you took out today. Let the Shinigami worry about her. You find Artemis and bring him home."

Holly knew Butler hated that he couldn't come with her, not only for Artemis' sake, but also for hers. She wished he could come too. While she and Artemis had occasionally been separated from him on previous adventures she had always been with one or the other when the situation involved them. Since Artemis wasn't here leaving Butler behind felt wrong. She forced a smile and a laid a hand on his arm. "Don't worry, we'll be back before you know it."

When she returned Ishida was waiting next to the Garganta, "Are you ready?"

Holly walked up to the Garganta and stood facing it next to him. "Let's go." They ran into the darkness together. The opening closed behind them and the only light came from the glowing blue paths beneath their feet. It was unbearably quiet so Holly finally asked the question that had been in the back of her mind for some time now. "Where are the others? The ones you went with to save her last time."

Ishida was quiet before answering, "Aizen arranged things so that most of the Shinigami were convinced that she joined him willingly. He sent one of his strongest Arrancars after her with the message that if she didn't come to Hueco Mundo all her friends would be killed. We were fighting several Arrancars at the time and he let her see so she would know it was no idle threat. At that point most of us couldn't handle them, so she went. He even gave her time to heal one of us so that it would look like she chose to go."

"Wow, that is really twisted. Although it seems like if she was really joining the bad guys she wouldn't be healing any of you." Holly wondered how a human would have the power to do that at all before continuing. "That explains why there were only five of you then, but where are the others now?"

"The Shinigami might have let her off the hook if that was all, but after the fighting she healed some of the Arrancars. She was only being kind, she can't stand to see anyone, even an enemy, in pain, but the Shinigami took it as proof that she was a traitor. They knew we would stop an execution so instead they took her Shun Shun Rikka—the source of her powers—and ordered that she was not to have any more contact with the Shinigami or Hollows. Yoruichi kept an eye on her just in case Aizen or someone like him targeted her again. She and Urahara told me when the Arrancars took her because I haven't had anything to do with Shinigami since then. If the others who helped me got involved the Shinigami would know and this time they would probably kill her."

Holly was silent. It was starting to sound like the Shinigami were worse than the Hollows. She knew Hollows were heartless, the fact that each literally had a hole in its chest proved that, but at least they didn't choose to be that way.

The tunnel ended and they dropped onto the white sand of Hueco Mundo. It was not so dark that they could not see, but there was not much light. Holly quickly took in her surroundings. They seemed to be in a forest of massive white trees, much larger than even the North American Redwoods. It looked like those trees were the reason for the lack of light despite the wide, empty spaces between them.

"Damn it! We came out in the Menos Forest!" Ishida exclaimed.

"What does that mean?"

"It means we have to find a way up before we can find our friends."

"That doesn't sound so bad."

"It also means that we'll have to fight a lot of Hollows to get there. This is where the weakest ones live."

"Well if it's only the weakest ones we shouldn't have too much to worry about."

"There are more of them down here than anywhere else. Saying they're not as bad is like saying a group of piranhas isn't as bad as a great white shark because they're smaller."

Holly got the point. This was bad.

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 **Edge of the Valley, Hueco Mundo**

Nel was keeping watch on her own as Orihime and Fowl explored the caves. They were lucky that no Adjuchas seemed to be using them at the moment. Of course they didn't usually go back to places like this anyway, not right into the caves at least. There were a few wandering nearby, but they didn't seem to notice the two and they were hardly going to attack Arrancars.

Suddenly she became aware of the presence of a familiar spirit energy. She turned slowly, scanning the area. There was Kasai, close enough that Nel could pick up on her spirit energy and was sure Kasai had to be aware of hers, but far enough that they couldn't have spoken to each other. Not that they would do anything but exchange threats.

Suddenly Grimmjow was beside her, "What's that bitch doing back here?" he growled, reaching for his Zanpakuto.

Nel grabbed his hand before he could draw it, "You know neither of us is a match for her!"

"The three of us together could take her," he insisted.

"If she was alone." Ulquiorra was standing on Grimmjow's other side as if anticipating he would have to help Nel restrain him. "There are three Visoreds behind her, herding an Adjuchas toward the valley." They didn't need to ask how he knew that, he could see better than either of them, besides they had been so fixated on Kasai that they wouldn't have noticed if Aizen had been standing next to her.

"We can take them easily!" Grimmjow snarled.

"And while we were busy fighting them she would take us down!" Nel snapped at him. "Use your brain for once!" Grimmjow actually looked slightly hurt at her last comment. He expected that from Schiffer, but never Nel.

"What about the two down there?" he asked.

"She would not have come back here just to kill them," Ulquiorra said calmly. Even so they all watched, ready to be down there in an instant should Kasai give them a reason to think otherwise.

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 **Society of the Evening Star Base**

"So you're going to conduct your tests here instead of Hueco Mundo," Rowan confirmed.

Granz nodded, "You will be able to collect the necessary test subjects?"

"Yes of course, as many as you need," Rowan said absently, thinking. He knew the only thing Granz was interested in was science and he was confident that Kasai and her men would be able to retrieve the prisoners before Koboi's Arrancars did. That girl interested the Arrancar scientist more than anything. Perhaps he could cut Koboi out of this equation. "What exactly is Koboi doing while you're so busy?"

"Waiting for those three incompetents to bring back the prisoners. Nothing useful as usual."

"You don't seem confident that they will succeed."

"I doubt they are serious about catching them at all. Not the girl anyway. I have cameras all over Las Noches and I was watching the fighting when the Shinigami came to stop Aizen. She healed all three of them after their fights."

Rowan frowned, this was a more serious problem than he had thought. "Do they know the plan?"

"Don't we all?"

Rowan took a moment to calm himself, this didn't change anything. Kasai would deal with them. "I've sent my own expedition to retrieve the prisoners. Koboi is irrelevant. They have orders to bring both the prisoners back here. If you stick around you'll get your opportunity to study the girl as much as you want. In return for the use of your other project of course."

"I don't have any loyalty to Koboi or anyone else. Get me that girl and you can have anything you want from me."

Rowan smiled in satisfaction. It was so easy to manipulate someone who's only loyalty was to himself.

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 **Abandoned Caves, Hueco Mundo**

Orihime didn't know whether or not to believe what Artemis had told her. The problem was not the stories of his fairy friends, that was the easy part. It was the thought that her memories had not been lost but taken that she couldn't bring herself to accept. She had kept herself from thinking about it too much by asking Artemis about his fairy adventures. She now knew more about his life than her own. She also knew the mind wipe could be beaten. The People had erased themselves from Artemis' memories once, but he had recovered those memories completely. Of course he was a genius and had a chance to prepare for the mind wipe. Orihime was no genius, and if she had managed to leave a message for herself it was lost.

Artemis was nice enough not to ask how she was, or maybe his headache was just getting worse. "Why would they want me to forget? I mean, taking just the encounters with them out, like they did with you makes sense, but why would they make me forget everything?"

Artemis had his eyes closed and was massaging his temples. "I don't know. It may not have been the People. From what we've seen here I wouldn't be surprised if there was something else out there." He looked up at the cave entrance, "There _is_ something out there," he whispered.

Orihime did not have to ask what he meant. She could feel something at the cave's entrance. A large creature stalked into the cave. It was unlike anything else she could remember seeing, yet it seemed familiar. It was as big as a house, moving on four legs, instead of a face was a white bone mask behind which red eyes glowed, but the most disturbing thing about it was the hole through its chest.

It advanced slowly, looking from one to the other as if it couldn't make up its mind which of them to eat. Suddenly Artemis clutched at his head, "No, I won't let you out!" he grunted. What was wrong with him? The creature began to move toward him. Orihime desperately picked up a rock and threw it at the thing. It turned and advanced toward her. She flattened herself against the wall, not knowing what to do. Suddenly the creature dissolved in a flash of red light. A red-haired woman and three men stood in the cave's entrance.

Orihime launched herself off the wall, running towards Artemis, who was still clutching his head. "Stay away from him!" the woman was impossibly holding her back. One of the men was kneeling by Artemis, the other two were standing over them with drawn swords.

"Concentrate!" the one on the ground was saying, "You have to let it know you're in charge!"

"What are they doing?" Orihime cried.

"Helping him," the woman answered turning her around, "Don't watch, you won't want to see if this goes wrong." Orihime heard Artemis scream and squeezed her eyes shut even though she was already facing away. What was happening back there? Her own problems didn't seem so bad anymore.

Finally it was quiet and the woman released her. Orihime ran to Artemis and nearly fell to the floor next to him. "Are you all right?"

He nodded, then looked up at the strangers around them. "Who are you people?" the men introduced themselves as Hebiki, Daichi, and Akio. The woman spoke last.

"I'm sorry to have met like this. My name is Kasai Hono."

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 **I seriously need to work more on the next story in this series so if y'all would be nice enough to review it would help motivate me. Although it is encouraging that this story has three followers now. Hopefully by the time I'm finsihed posting this one enough of the next one will be ready that y'all won't have to wait long for it. I would like to have the whole thing written before I start posting it, but as long as I'm far enough ahead not to have to write the next chapter I might not wait that long.**

 **Thanks and prayer,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	10. Chapter Nine Problems

**Well here it is, hope you enjoy it.**

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 **Chapter Nine**

 **Problems**

 **Menos Forest, Hueco Mundo**

As the Hollow in front of Holly disintegrated she was already looking for the next one. When no more appeared she turned to see Ishida had finished the ones coming from his direction. They automatically stood back to back whenever a large group of Hollows appeared. It had not taken Holly long to learn that Ishida could fire twelve hundred arrows simultaneously, it was a skill she had immediately wanted to learn, but the Menos Forest was no place for a lesson.

"Are you sure you know where we're going?" Holly asked as the reishi from their bows scattered.

"No, but we should keep moving," Ishida answered and started walking.

"Where are you trying to go?"

"Last time when we fell down here we got back to the surface through a cave that took us straight to Las Noches, Aizen's stronghold."

"A cave, of course," Holly muttered then said, "So you think they're at this Las Noches place."

"It is the only fortress in Hueco Mundo, so it seems like the logical place to start."

"Any idea where to look once we get in?"

"Not really. We never actually found out where they were keeping Inoue, she was in Aizen's throne room when we got to her and the place is enormous."

Holly looked up at the trees and sighed. She could see why they weren't just climbing up, the lowest branches were hundreds of feet high, but looking for a cave that was conveniently close to their destination did not make much more sense."I can't even tell one direction from anther down here. There aren't even any stars."

"There aren't any stars in Hueco Mundo, and even if there were you can't see the sky from here. The trees hold up the sand that is the ground on the surface," Ishida informed her, pushing his glasses up. Holly had never been so glad she had lived underground her whole life.

"If it's only sand isn't there some kind of Quincy trick that can get us there so can we dig through it or something?"

Ishida paused and looked up. "I don't know how thick it is, and the reishi required would probably catch the Hollows attention," He concluded.

Holly kicked a tree root in frustration. Artemis should be the one on the rescue team, he would have thought it through. "The longer we wait the more danger they're in! And we don't even know where we're going!"

"Once we get to the surface we should be able to see Las Noches, then getting there will be the easy part."

"We can control the reishi here same as in the Garganta, right?" when Ishida nodded she continued, "So we could stand on a platform of reishi and just ride it up like an elevator."

"A concentration of reishi like that will attract Hollows," Ishida reminded her.

Holly rolled her eyes, "That's why I control the platform while you use that twelve hundred arrows per shot trick to take care of any Hollows that come to bother us."

"You're forgetting about the tons of sand in the way," he pushed his glasses up again like they were proof that he was smarter.

"We'll blast through it. Whatever it takes. With a bunch of giant trees holding it up it's not all gonna come down if we put a hole in it."

"We might as well call Koboi and tell her we're coming!"

"Oh, she knows I'm coming. That's why she took Artemis, he comes up with the plans so in her mind he's the dangerous one."

"Do you think you can hold it together long enough?"

"I got here. I can at least get us to the branches. We can climb from there if we have to."

"Fine, it's worth a try."

Holly formed the platform and stepped onto it, "Try isn't good enough."

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 **Edge of the Valley, Hueco Mundo**

Grimmjow was keeping watch. Despite his initial reaction to seeing her he was not stupid enough to try fighting Kasai on his own. He still didn't like that she was here at all, let alone anywhere near Orihime, but for the moment it was safer to keep their distance. The moment they tried to attack she would not hesitate to use Orihime as a hostage.

He was so distracted that he didn't immediately sense the Adjuchas trying to sneak up on him. Of the course the roar when it charged gave it away. "Oh, come on," he muttered, turning to face it as he spiked his spirit force so it would know what it was dealing with.

The lower level Hollow froze, realizing it was outmatched. It shifted into a submissive posture, exposing its mask. Grimmjow sighed, there was no point killing it, it was no threat and if it knew that it wouldn't put up enough of a fight to be any fun. He placed a hand on its mask, letting it know he wouldn't kill it, then moved back. It immediately turned and ran, glad to have escaped with its life.

"I never took you as one to just let them go," Nel commented from behind him.

"You know I only like to fight the ones stronger than me," he turned to face her and saw she was smiling. "What are you doing up anyway? This is my watch."

"What, you don't think I would notice a charging Adjuchas?"

"Didn't seem to bother Schiffer."

"That's because he assumes you can handle it, and if it turns out you can't that's your problem."

"Wait…so you're saying you didn't think I could take care of myself?"

"The possibility that you need help crossed my mind."

"What is it with you helping?"

Nel shrugged, "Call it a maternal instinct."

"Oh, alright then. Wait, what! I'm not some little kid!"

"Then maybe you should stop acting like one. Get some rest, I'll take over the watch."

Grimmjow grumbled, but settled down on the sand to let her take a shift.

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 **Abandoned Caves, Hueco Mundo**

"What was that?" Artemis asked once everyone had settled down.

"You're a Visored," Kasai answered.

"A what?"

"You have a Hollow inside you. It will try to devour you from the inside out, take over your body and destroy everyone and everything that crosses it's path," Daichi explained. He was a short, stocky man with earth brown hair and eyes.

"What is a Hollow and what can I do about it?" Artemis asked. The four newcomers looked at each other in surprise.

Hibiki, who was the tallest of the three men, thin with storm-gray hair and nearly black eyes voiced their question. "You don't know what a Hollow is?" Artemis and Orihime both nodded.

Akio, between the other two in height and build with pale blond hair and sky blue eyes took it upon himself to tell them, "Hollows are literally heartless monsters. They all have white bone masks instead of faces and a hole, usually in their chest."

"Like that creature that attacked us before you came!" Orihime exclaimed.

Kasai nodded, "They devour souls, living or dead, even each other. By doing so they get stronger. The weakest are seen in the World of the Living and the Menos Forest. Then there are the three levels of Menos. Menos Grande or Gillians are the largest, but weakest of the Menos class. They are all exactly the same. Adjuchas, like the one you just saw are smaller but more powerful. The strongest are the Vasto Lordes, which are about the same size as humans."

"How can I have a Hollow inside me?"

"It's uncommon, but not unheard of for Shinigami to develop a Hollow, like a second personality. We're not really sure what causes it," Daichi provided.

Artemis was getting frustrated with having to ask so many questions, usually he was the one with the answers, "What are Shinigami?"

"You must be a substitute," Hibiki muttered before answering. "Shinigami are beings from the Soul Society who have two main jobs, helping souls who have died move on and exorcising Hollows with their Zanpakuto."

Artemis held back a groan and asked, "What are Zanpakuto?"

"A Zanpakuto is a part of a Shinigami's soul that works as a weapon. The Shinigami can talk to it in his or her inner world—in their mind. Outwardly when it's sealed it appears to be a weapon, most commonly a sword, but other forms are not unheard of. The Shinigami can release its spirit energy into Shikai,, which is when its individual abilities emerge, and Bankai, which manifests a version of its true form. You have to learn its name to use either release and Shikai is the lower level. Bankai can be up to ten times stronger and it is not uncommon for a Shinigami to train for over a decade to achieve it." Akio answered.

"How does this help me stop the Hollow inside me?"

"You have to fight it in your inner world and force it to submit to you, then you can draw on its power in battle. This will be easier if you know your Zanpakuto's name," Kasai informed him.

"How do I learn its name?"

"Meditate and talk to it in your inner world," Akio explained. Artemis smiled, that would be easy, he meditated regularly. It was surprising he had not talked to his Zanpakuto already.

Hibiki spoke up, "You can't do that here. Hueco Mundo is the Hollow's world, your inner Hollow is stronger here. We'll have to take you to World of the Living to train."

"Why not the Soul Society?" Orihime asked.

Daichi frowned and said, "What we are isn't our fault, but the Shinigami think of us as abominations so we are forced to live in exile."

"You're all Visoreds?" Orihime questioned, looking at the dragon-shaped mask on Kasai's left cheek.

Kasai smiled at her, "Yes, not all of us are fortunate enough to be able to put the mask away when we aren't using a Hollows power. You don't have to come right away, Artemis' Hollow is under control for now. I think you two need some time to talk."

Artemis and Orihime looked at each other. They certainly did have a lot to talk about.

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 **Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

Koboi was getting bored. With all her best Arrancars off on one mission or another the only others around were the "garbage bugs" who were only good for menial tasks. She usually just let the other Arrancars make sure they were doing their jobs, but with nothing else to do she set off on a patrol of her castle.

Two of the weakest Arrancars, Pesche and Dondochakka, were goofing off at the front gate. "What do you two think you are doing?" Koboi demanded.

"We were just having a little fun, dontcha know," Dondochakka protested.

"Guard duty gets boring when there's nothing to guard," Pesche added.

"I don't care how boring it is, there is no excuse for slacking!"

"Yes, Koboi-sama! Sorry, Koboi-sama!" they exclaimed in unison, bowing.

"Were you two on duty when the prisoners escaped?"

"No, Koboi-sama!" Pesche insisted, waving his thin arms in the air. He didn't point out that there had not been a guard duty before the escape.

"Of course not, Koboi-sama!" Dondochakka added bouncing from foot to foot.

"Do something about those spots! They are hurting my eyes!" Koboi commanded, looking down her nose at Dondochakka.

"They're polka dots!" he protested.

"I don't care what you call them, get rid of them!" she turned on her heel and walked away with a smile. Nothing like abusing the help to cheer her up.

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 **That's all for now. Let me know what you think.**

 **Thanks and prayer,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	11. Chapter Ten Desperate

**New chapter! Hope you like it.**

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 **Chapter Ten**

 **Desperate**

 **Menos Forest, Hueco Mundo**

Holly and Ishida didn't get very high before hundreds of Hollows started coming to investigate. Between Ishida's ability to fire twelve hundred arrows at a time and the speed with which he fired the volleys they weren't getting too close for comfort. Holly could see dark ones with masks that looked like white versions of plague masks towering over the rest.

"Those are the Gillians," Ishida informed her as he shot down all the ones in sight. As more and more Hollows came at once they were able to get closer. Holly tried to move faster, but without much success. Finally they were within reach of the roof of sand.

Holly fired a blast up at it. She had been hoping to break through in one blow, but she barely made a dent. She fired again and again as Ishida continued to ward off Hollows. Slowly they were able to start moving though the gap she was making. Ishida began alternating between firing down at the Hollows and up at the sand between Holly's shots. It sped their progress, but also allowed the Hollows to start closing in. Finally they broke through and emerged from the hole.

As soon as their feet hit the sand they started firing though the hole at the Hollows that tried to clamber through after them. The Hollows were biting and clawing at each other, every one determined to be the first through. Slowly their numbers thinned until they were all gone. Holly and Ishida both collapsed to the ground as soon as they were sure no more were coming.

"That is exactly the kind of idiotic stunt that Kurosaki would pull!" Ishida exclaimed when he caught his breath.

"That's nothing. I once rescued two superior officers who were being held in a human habitation by using a LEP shuttle to tear the house down, back when it was illegal to enter human dwellings without an invitation," Holly replied, grinning.

"That definitely sounds like something Kurosaki would do. Fowl didn't come up with that plan, did he?"

"No, that was a few years before we met. His plans tend to be more complex."

"Like using energy from an exploding bomb to transport an island from Limbo back into real time," Ishida stated with a touch of sarcasm.

"Hey, would you have thought of it?"

"Probably not," he admitted. "Don't his plans ever go wrong?"

"Of course. I didn't tell you all the details you know, that would take a few books! Like when we had to catch that lemur, that took a few wrong turns, but we got him in the end."

"How exactly did that go wrong?"

"Our dwarf friend, Mulch, agreed to tunnel under the park to get Arty to the lemur while I stayed above ground as backup. Mulch's sense of smell led them right to the lemur, but part of his cage was over the gorilla's cage. They came out in the gorilla's cage. The gorilla decided Arty was a threat and attacked him," her voice shook with the memory. "I got it away from him and I was so relieved when the healing worked…" she cut herself off and sat up.

"Where is Las Noches anyway?" she asked.

Ishida wondered about the sudden change of subject, but didn't press the matter. He stood, turning until he could see Aizen's old fortress. "It's there," he said pointing. "But we should get some rest before we go. We won't do them any good if we're exhausted when we get there."

"Fine, you take the first watch," Holly said laying down again. Considering she had done most of the work to get them here Ishida didn't argue. He sat looking towards Las Noches, hoping they would get there in time.

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 **Abandoned Caves, Hueco Mundo**

"I don't trust them," Orihime whispered. She and Artemis were facing the back of the cave as far from the Visoreds as they could get. Which put the Visoreds between them and the exit.

"Why not?" Artemis asked her. He couldn't see any reason not to believe them. Everything they had told him fit with what he had been experiencing for the past year.

"Didn't you notice? She seems more like those Arran—whatever they were back at that prison. If Shinigami can have Hollows inside them maybe Hollows can have Zanpakuto."

"It seems possible. Maybe she is, but she was afraid we wouldn't believe she was really trying to help if she told us that," Artemis considered.

"Maybe it's a trick to get us to come back without any trouble!"

"We hardly gave them any trouble the first time they caught us. A trick seems entirely unnecessary."

"That's exactly what they would want you to think if it was trick! Maybe it will be like an episode of one of those science fiction shows when they make the characters think they're safe at home, but it's just an illusion so they can mess with their brains!"

"I think you watch too much science fiction. The fact is, unless I learn to control this thing it is going to turn me into a rampaging monster and anyone near me is going to hurt or killed—including you. That doesn't leave me with much choice."

Orihime was quiet. Something about that possibility was not only terrifying, but familiar. The fact that she may have faced something like that before was worse than anything else that had happened since she came to this awful place.

"I should also point out that we don't have any other way back to our world." Artemis added after a few moments.

"What about Holly? If she comes looking for you she must have a way. Besides, you don't want her to be stuck here and not know you escaped."

Artemis nodded, she had him there. Holly would come, and she would refuse to leave until she found him, he was sure of that. "Perhaps we can wait until we know whether or not she is here. I don't see any reason why they would not go along with that." Orihime nodded, at least that would give them more time to decide whether or not these people were really on their side.

Artemis walked back to the Visoreds to explain the situation. Orihime stayed where she was. She couldn't explain why she didn't trust them, it was just a feeling, but for a year and a half she hadn't been able to trust anyone but herself. Artemis had quickly proved an exception, mostly because they were both prisoners. She didn't want to see the first friend she could remember turn into a monster, but she didn't want to get captured again either.

Her fingers absently brushed against the hair pins she had put on her collar. She pulled them off and looked at them, frowning. Like everything else here they were frustratingly familiar.

Artemis came back and sat next to her. "They agreed to wait. I asked Kasai about your Hollow theory. She said it's true and they are called Arrancars. Apparently she's the only one who's not hell-bent on massacring the Shinigami which is why she's with the Visoreds instead of Las Noches—that's where we were imprisoned."

Orihime nodded, but she thought that was exactly what she would say to gain their trust. The word Arrancar also caught her attention, she had almost used it earlier and in exactly the way Artemis had said it should be. The longer she was here the more it seemed his theory that she had been here before was right.

Why would she have been here? Why would the Hollows or Shinigami want her to forget about it? Why would they be so desperate they would erase all her memories instead of just the ones about this place? She closed her hand around the hairpins. It seemed the more she learned the more questions she had.

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 **Edge of the Valley Hueco Mundo**

Ulquiorra watched as blue flashes of reishi shone against the horizon. The reishi was unmistakably Quincy. It seemed at least one of the girl's old friends was on his way to rescue her. How would he react when he learned she had escaped without his help? Of course with Kasai involved she was likely to need rescuing again. The Quincy's long-range techniques just might give him an important advantage. If it weren't for those Visoreds. If it came to a fight, which seemed likely, Kasai would have one of them deal with anyone who could avoid her techniques. The woman might have some formidable skills, but she was little more than cowardly trash.

The flashes of reishi stopped. Judging by the distance it would be several hours before the Quincy arrived. It seemed unlikely that Kasai would do anything too drastic in that time. She had the boy fooled—and Koboi had called him a genius! Of course she also called herself a genius so her standards weren't that high. Kasai would take her time convincing the girl. She was patient. This was one time that virtue could be used against her.

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 **Let me know what you think!**

 **Thanks and prayer,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	12. Chapter Eleven Power

**Here's the next chapter. We're in the last third now.**

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 **Chapter Eleven**

 **Power**

 **Desert, Hueco Mundo**

Holly was getting nervous. They hadn't been attacked by Hollows since arriving on the surface. She found it hard to believe they were just lucky. "Where are all the Hollows?" she finally asked Ishida.

"I don't think many that are not Arrancars come near Las Noches. Some Arrancars are so powerful that just being exposed to their reiatsu can kill a lesser Hollow," Ishida explained.

"Why doesn't that make me feel better?" Holly muttered.

"Don't worry, I've fought Arrancars before. If it comes to that let me handle them and just focus on getting Inoue and Fowl out," Ishida spoke with the same confidence Artemis did when he was sure a plan would work.

"You don't know Koboi. She's crazy, but she's a genius. She knows I'm coming for Artemis, she'll have a plan ready. We've beaten her before, but not like this; we were working together, and we nearly lost Artemis last time."

"She sounds a lot like Aizen. I know she's dangerous or she couldn't have become an Arrancar in just a year, but does she know anything about Quincy?"

"I don't know. I wouldn't be surprised if she did. She probably found out everything she could about who would come after your friend before she took her. If there are still records in there from when Aizen ran the place she would have read them."

Ishida nodded, "I see what you mean. We'll have to assume she knows."

"So what's the plan once we get in? Just wander around until we find them and hope we don't get caught?"

"Unless you can think of something better," the Quincy sounded as superior as Artemis with less reason. The former criminal mastermind would never charge in without information he could craft a plot out of.

Finally they came to Las Noches. The blank, white wall stretched for miles in either direction. "How do we get in, exactly?" Holly asked.

Ishida looked up, "How likely is it that Koboi would have repaired all the damage from the battle?"

"She wouldn't have done it herself, but if she could get someone else to she would have."

"There were at least two holes blown in the roof during one of the last battles. If we can get in through one of them it might attract less attention." Maybe he wasn't as stupid as she had thought.

"Same as we got up here then?"

Ishida nodded, "That would be best. In case we do attract attention."

Holly found controlling the reiatsu platform easier this time, and they made it to the top of the dome without incident. The landing wasn't so smooth. The reiatsu up there hit Holly hard, causing her to lose her concentration. The platform disappeared and they fell the last few feet to the roof.

"What in Frond's name happened here?" Holly gasped. All the reiatsu in Hueco Mundo had a dark feel to it, but this went beyond that. Something truly evil had tainted the reiatsu up here.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize it would still be this bad!" Ishida exclaimed, rising to his feet and offering her a hand to help her up.

"Never mind, let's just find one of those holes and get away from here," she took his hand and stood, not sure she even wanted to hear the answer to her question.

They didn't have to look long before they found a large hole about where the reiatsu was at its worst. Holly took a deep breath to steady herself and made a platform she and Ishida could ride down on.

"So who's Frond? Ishida asked as they began their descent.

"The first Elf king. We use his name like that a lot." They were silent the rest of the way and this landing was much better. Or so they thought, until they saw that Koboi was waiting for them.

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 **Abandoned Caves, Hueco Mundo**

Orihime's eyes flew open. It seemed the nightmares wouldn't stop even when she was living one. She sat up and looked around the cave. Artemis was a few feet from her. He seemed to be dreaming, but at least he was asleep. Two of the Visoreds sat at opposite ends of the cave's entrance, on watch. Kasai and the other Visored were asleep just a few feet away from them. Unable to get back to sleep Orihime took the time to redo her hair. It wasn't as good as it would have been if she had the use of a comb and a mirror, but it was better than the tangled mess it had become over the last few days, if a place with no sun could have days.

She huddled against the cave wall, staring at the entrance. She didn't like being stuck in here with them guarding. It was too much like being a prisoner. Would they stop her if she tried to walk out? She remembered how someone had passed her and Artemis without seeing them when they escaped. Could she slip past these two just as easily?

She closed her eyes to concentrate. Don't see me, she thought repeatedly. Opening her eyes she stood and quietly walked towards the entrance, continuing the chant in her mind. The Visoreds didn't look up. She paused between them, waved a hand in front of each of their faces. They didn't react. She stepped out of the cave and, without meaning to, started running.

Had she really just done that? Could she keep people from seeing her just by not wanting them to? Surely if they had seen her they would have at least asked what she was doing. If she could do that could she do other things? Could this be a clue to her past?

She stopped outside the valley at a point where she could see most of it. Her mind was racing too much to enjoy the view and she didn't bother wondering why she had come here. Maybe she didn't need to be so worried after all. If Kasai and the Visoreds turned out to be the tricksters she feared she would be able to get herself and Artemis away from them easily.

She started walking around the edge of the valley, too excited to stay still. The discovery didn't really give her any answers except perhaps a hint of why someone would want to take her memories. Whatever it was she could do must have made her some enemies, but of who? Would the Arrancars or Shinigami have the ability to mind wipe her? Had she been mixed up with Artemis' Fairies somehow? If it had really been an accident why hadn't anyone come looking for her? Even if she had no family left, surely she had had friends. If not why would she have nightmares about being so desperate to save someone? Who was she so worried about anyway? She still had so many questions, but maybe she was just a little closer to finding answers.

She stopped walking, seeing something moving towards her. It only took her a few seconds to realize a Hollow was charging her. She knew she should be afraid, but she wasn't. She stood her ground as it drew closer, feeling energy build inside her that she knew was no adrenaline rush. The Hollow reared as it came closer, then pulled up short within arm's reach. It studied her in confusion for a few moments before slowly lowering its head exposing its mask to her. Without knowing how she knew what to do Orihime reached out and laid a hand on its mask. It didn't move until she removed her hand, then it turned and ran away. Before she could process the fact that she had just sent a Hollow running she heard a monotone voice behind her.

"Well done, Onna."

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 **Society of the Evening Star Base**

Granz finished injecting his serum into the last test subject. "You'll stay here for observation. I'll let you know when you can leave," he instructed. The human nodded, rubbing his arm where the needle had pierced his skin.

Granz left without another word and started to head to his quarters. He enjoyed his experiments, but it was so annoying to have to wear a gigai while performing these tests. He could have let someone else give the injections as he supervised, but he preferred to do it himself. He peeled out of the gigai as soon as the door to his room closed behind him, leaving it on the floor like dirty laundry.

"Ah, now that's better," he sighed, running his fingers through his hair. He didn't even have a chance to sit down before there was a demanding knock on his door.

Aggravated he opened the door and looked down to see Rowan Long wearing the most smug smile he had ever seen. "What do you want?" he snapped. "You know you don't get to use it until I have that girl."

"Oh, you'll have her soon enough," the elf replied, his smile not wavering.

"Tell me when she gets here," Granz said and started to close the door.

"This is about your first test subject."

"What about it?"

"He's dead."

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 **Ok, so the idea with Orihime being, well I guess I have call it invisible, is that the bracelet that supposedly hid her before she was taken to Hueco Mundo before was a "magic feather". Aizen figured she'd be able to do something like that, but didn't want her to know so that's what he came up with so she could leave the evidence he needed her to without getting caught. Telling her the Arrancars could see her when she used it would have been a way to keep her from escaping since she wouldn't think she could hide from them. All of which I pretty much came up with just because I thought it would be fun if she could still do that. Anyway, let me know what you thought of the chapter.**

 **Thanks and prayer,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	13. Chapter Twelve Hints

**Here we go! Hope you like it.**

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 **Chapter Twelve**

 **Hints**

 **Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

"Well what do we have here? I knew you would come, Short, but I didn't expect you to bring a friend," Koboi purred. She wore what appeared to be a white pants suit that hugged her curves, the neckline of the shirt was cut low leaving the hole in the left side of her chest clearly visible. Her straight dark hair fell to her shoulders, and her mask remnant circled the top of her head rearing up in front in the shape of a cobra's head with the hood spread and fangs bared. Her delicate pixie features would have been pretty if they had not been twisted into a condescending sneer. Piercing dark eyes were focused on Holly. The elf realized that her old enemy was taller now, human sized.

"Where is Artemis?" Holly demanded, her miss-matched blue and hazel eyes meeting Koboi's without flinching.

"You really should be more concerned about yourself, Captain," Koboi lowered her eyes a moment taking in the fact that Holly no longer wore the LEP uniform. "Or should I say former captain?"

Holly ignored the Arrancar's mocking tone. "Why should I be worried? We've beaten you before," she pointed out. From the corner of her eye she could see Ishida moving, he pulled something from his weapon's belt and drove it into the ground. He started stealthily moving away, pulling out another of the mysterious objects. Holly wasn't sure what he was doing, but she knew her job was to keep Koboi from noticing. Considering the former Pixie's obsessive nature that shouldn't be too difficult.

Koboi's sneer never wavered at Holly's defiance. "I am aware of the past, but I am so much more powerful now. Ironically you and Fowl are the ones who made that possible. Had I not died in our last encounter I would still be a mere Pixie, reliant on runes and black magic. Now I make my own magic. Those in this world who do not answer to me fear me and soon I well have an army to take the others."

"If you owe us so much, why did you capture Artemis? Why can't you just leave us alone?" Holly asked, taking a step back. She was beginning to recognize the shape Ishida was making with his stakes and suspected it would be better if she was outside it when he finished.

"I still want revenge, you two were at least partly responsible for my death after all," she spoke as if this was completely reasonable. "Besides, I couldn't leave Fowl loose to concoct any plans to rescue you."

"Rescue me?" Holly kept backing away, she was almost clear. Ishida was holding a vial of blue liquid, poised to pour it onto the last stake he had placed in the pentagon.

"Of course. I am searching for a magical artifact. I need your help to find it."

"You know I would never help you!" just a few more steps.

"Poor choice of words on my part. I need you to motivate the archaeologist who can find it. She's already been enlisted thanks to an old…acquaintance of yours. She is giving us an awful lot of trouble, however. I suspect she would cooperate better with you around."

Holly froze. Was Koboi suggesting what she thought? Was it even possible? A part of her desperately wanted to believe it.

Ishida let a drop of the liquid fall onto the stake. Blue reishi exploded within the pentagram. Holly stared at it, wishing she could have gotten more information from Koboi. Ishida ran past her, grabbing her arm and dragging her away. "Come on! She's strong, I don't know how long that will slow her down." Holly started running, struggling to keep up. If not for his hold on her she would have fallen behind. She realized he was using reishi to propel himself, moving faster than humanly possible. She focused, mimicking him, not only to move faster but to take her mind off Koboi's' words. She had probably been lying anyway.

"I can't sense Inoue's reiatsu anywhere in Las Noches," Ishida informed her.

"Artemis would have realized she was trying to lure me in. He might have found a way to escape and taken Inoue with him," Holly decided.

"Maybe Koboi didn't take her in the first place and Fowl is still here," Ishida pointed out.

Holly shook her head, "Then who else would have taken her? Aizen is still in prison. Our best chance is to get out of here and hope you can zero in on her reiatsu. If Artemis isn't with her we can come back."

"That might not be our only option. I can sense two of the Arrancars who helped us get to Las Noches before. They might know where they are."

"I thought Arrancars were the bad guys."

"The third one was a little girl. She took a liking to Kurosaki."

"But she's not one of the ones that's here now?"

"No, but these two shouldn't be hard to get information out of."

"I guess it's worth a try," she just hoped he was right.

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 **Abandoned Caves, Hueco Mundo**

Artemis was awakened by a kick to his side. "Where is she?" Kasai demanded as he sat up.

"Who?"

"Your little girlfriend isn't here. Where has she gone?"

Artemis stood so that Kasai wasn't looming over him quite as much. She suddenly seem very threatening. "She has nightmares. Perhaps she couldn't sleep and went outside."

"Daichi and Akio were keeping watch. They never saw her leave. How could she have gotten past them?" Why was she so eager to find Orihime? She didn't sound worried about her.

"Perhaps they fell asleep," Artemis suggested. Kasai raised a hand as if to strike him, but restrained herself.

"Go find her." Her tone implied a threat if he failed. Artemis slipped past her towards the cave entrance, glad Kasai hadn't insisted on looking herself. Holly should be the one dealing with this. She would have known exactly what to do with Kasai. She would have been able to protect Orihime.

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 **Edge of the Valley, Hueco Mundo**

Orihime turned to see the same Arrancar who had taken her from the lab at Las Noches. "Who are you?" she asked, surprised by her own boldness. Shouldn't she be afraid of him?

"Ulquiorra Schiffer, I was the fourth Espada when Aizen gave the orders." Orihime somehow knew that meant he had been the fourth strongest of the ten strongest Arrancars that had worked for Aizen. "I was also the one who brought you here before." He seemed be watching her reaction, so she didn't react.

"You know I don't remember?" she tried to stay as poker faced as he was, but the chance to get answers made that difficult.

"It was not difficult to guess what the Shinigami had done. Besides there would hardly be a point in asking me anything if you did remember."

"So it was the Shinigami who took my memories? Why?" all attempts at a poker face were abandoned.

"It was most likely the Shinigami, although it is possible there was some other cause. If the Shinigami are responsible it would be because they considered you a traitor after you healed myself and two other Arrancars."

"So were they right?" Why did she think he would tell the truth? There was no reason to believe him.

"Aizen arranged things so that it would appear you were willing to come. You were not, you came only to protect your friends. I do not pretend to understand your motivation to heal us. Except Nelliel, she helped your friends find you."

"So people came for me last time," she whispered. He didn't answer. It wasn't really a question anyway. "Did Koboi send you after us?"

"Yes," he answered simply. That surprised her. Just because she thought it was true didn't mean he would say so. Of course he had just admitted to kidnapping her. She doubted there was anything she could do about it if he wanted to drag her back to Las Noches. She was about to ask him why had hadn't yet when she heard Artemis calling her.

She looked down at the valley and saw Artemis standing in front of the cave they had spent the night in. When she turned back around Ulquiorra was gone.

"Orihime!" Artemis called again. Was that the first time he had used her name without an honorific?

"Coming!" She called back, not sure he could hear. She retraced her steps around the edge and back down the path that led into the valley. Artemis was waiting for her.

"I thought you had wandered off and gotten yourself eaten!" he exclaimed when they no longer had to shout.

"Sorry. I couldn't sleep, so I went for a walk."

As they walked back to the cave Kasai came to meet them. "I can't imagine how you got out without anyone seeing. You really shouldn't wander alone out there." Orihime thought the concern in her voice sounded false.

"I didn't mean to worry anyone. I didn't go far."

"Where were you?" Kasai asked.

"Just exploring some of the other caves." Artemis was holding such a good poker face that Orihime wondered if he and Ulquiorra could possibly be related.

"You're lucky a Hollow didn't show up. I sent Daichi and Akio to look for food. They should be back soon." Kasai started back towards the cave, but Orihime and Artemis hung back. Artemis waited until the Arrancar disappeared inside to speak.

"She was angry when she found out you left. I think you might have been right about her. She certainly doesn't seem to like the idea of us finding a way back without her. How did you get out anyway?"

"Remember how someone passed us in Las Noches? I just concentrated on not wanting the Visoreds to see me and walked right past them." Artemis looked at her in surprise and she hurried to tell him the rest. She described her encounter with the Hollow and her conversation with Ulquiorra. "It doesn't make any sense, he had the perfect opportunity to take me back to Las Noches, but I'm still here."

Artemis nodded, "At least we know we were right about you being here before, and now we have some idea why you don't remember—if he was telling the truth.'

"I think he was, but I guess we can't be sure. Admitting we were enemies before could be a trick to make me think he was being honest when the rest was lies."

"At this point all we can do is hope that Holly gets here soon so we can leave."

Orihime nodded, but after being teased with possible answers she wasn't sure she wanted to leave.

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 **I kind of feel sorry for Daichi and Akio, seems like they get stuck doing all the work.**

 **Obviously I'm messing with the end of the Arrancar Arc here. I just didn't think it made sense for Orhime to let someone die right in front of her like she did Ulquiorra, and frankly I didn't want him to be dead even if it did make sense. As for Grimmjow I'm not up to date on the mange, but I don't think he died and it made sense to me that Orhime would heal him if she came across him while looking for Nel. Anyway, let me know what you think.**

 **Thanks and prayers,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	14. Chapter Thirteen Progress

**Sorry it took a while to around to posting this chapter. I didn't have a chance over Thanksgiving week, and the week after when I did have a chance I sort of didn't think about it until that chance was over. Hope this was worth the wait.**

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 **Chapter Thirteen**

 **Progress**

 **Las Noches, Hueco Mundo**

Holly and Ishida found two Arrancars guarding what seemed to be a blank wall. One was tall, skinny and wearing purple except for his white mask which made him look like a giant bug. The other was short and stout, wearing yellow with black dots.

"Pesche, Dondochakka!" Ishida called, bow ready to fire.

"Hey, Uryu! The tall one called back, waving. He stopped abruptly when he saw the bow, "Hey, buddy, what do have that thing out for?"

"So that if Koboi checks the video it looks like I'm threatening you!" Ishida responded impatiently.

"Oh, I get it!"

"What'cha doin' here?" the short one asked.

"Dondochakka! Isn't it obvious? He came to rescue his girlfriend…again," the tall one, who must have been Pesche pointed out. Holly was beginning to doubt these two would be any help at all.

"Inoue is not my girlfriend!"

"But you are here to rescue her for the second time—that's pretty much all it takes right?" Pesche pressed.

"This isn't some fairy tale you know!"

Holly jumped in before Pesche had a chance to reply, "You know why he came, does that mean she was here?"

"Yeah, she was here."

"What about Artemis? About the same height as Ishida, black hair, blue eyes?"

"I saw someone like that! A Shinigami, he left with Inoue," Dondochakka answered, pointing at the wall.

"Where did they go?" Ishida demanded, brandishing his bow and arrow.

"We don't know. They just went out the door." Pesche said, gesturing toward the wall.

"Koboi was still here, so she must have sent someone after them. Can you tell us who we're up against?"

Pesche actually laughed, "Nothing to worry about. She sent Nel-sama, along with Grimmjow and Ulquiorra."

"She sent Schiffer! And you're acting like this is no big deal!" Ishida's hands tightened on his bow and and arrow, and he gritted his teeth. He was obviously making an effort not to shoot the messenger.

"Who is that?" Holly asked.

"Ulquiorra Schiffer is the one who brought Inoue here last time. He also guarded her. I tried to fight him, but my arrows didn't even scratch him. Kurosaki was the only one who stood a chance against him, and even he nearly lost."

"But if they wanted to bring 'em back they'd be back by now, donchaknow," Dondochakka said in what was meant to be a reassuring tone.

"Just open the damn door!"

Pesche slapped a panel on the wall and it split into a massive double door. Ishida ran through with Holly close behind him. Holly didn't bother asking how they knew where to go. The only logical thing for Artemis and Inoue to do was move forward with Las Noches behind them.

She asked another question to distract herself from the danger their friends might be in. "So what happened to the other one who helped you? The little girl who had a crush on Kurosaki."

"She wasn't really a little girl. Nel lost a lot of reiatsu fighting another Arrancar, since everything here is made of reiatsu that caused her to shrink and appear to be child. Her mind was damaged as well so she acted like a child too. Inoue healed her."

"Isn't she one of the ones Koboi sent after them?"

"Yes. In fact all three of them are the ones she healed."

"So Pesche was right and we don't have to worry."

"Not about Nel. Even Grimmjow has enough honor to feel like he owes her, he paid her back for healing him on Aizen's orders before asking her for another favor. Schiffer is the one I'm worried about. He followed every order Aizen gave him, I have no reason to think he wouldn't do the same for Koboi."

"But the others would stop him wouldn't they?"

"They might try, but I'm not sure they could win a fight with him. The ranks were determined by their strength, Grimmjow was ranked lower than him. He beat him once, but that was with a trick he won't fall for again. Nel might have a better chance, but the fight she was injured in was with someone lower ranked than him, so I'm not sure. Although she did beat that Arrancar later."

"Sounds like they could take him on if they work together," Holly said hopefully. She didn't want to have to find out though.

They were silent until they reached the edge of a large valley with caves in every cliff.

"Nel and the others are nearby, and I can sense a few strong spirit energies down there," Ishida observed.

"It's a perfect place to hide. Artemis would take advantage of it." Holly added. She found a path into the valley and took it, Ishida close behind her. He's here. He has to be here, she thought and started calling.

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 **Abandoned Caves, Hueco Mundo**

"I'm beginning to doubt, your girlfriend is going to show up," Kasai said to Artemis.

"Holly is not my girlfriend, and she will come. Once she sets her mind to something she doesn't give up." Artemis assured her. He was sitting against the wall at the cave's entrance, Orihime sat at the other end of the opening. Kasai and the Visoreds were clustered at the back of the cave.

"How is she going to find us here? The first place she'll look is Las Noches, she can't know where we went from there," Orihime pointed out.

"You're right," Artemis said, standing. "Also Koboi probably set a trap for her. I should go back to Las Noches and make sure she isn't the one who needs to be rescued."

Orihime rose as well, "I'll come with you."

"You two are not prepared to handle Koboi, not to mention whatever Arrancars she has working for her," Kasai objected. "I'll go back to Las Noches with Hibiki and see if you friend is there. Akio and Daichi can take you two back to our base in the World of the Living to start your training."

Artemis shook his head, "Unacceptable. I will not leave until I know Holly is safe. I'm the reason she may be in danger."

"And I'm not leaving without Artemis. I never would have gotten out of Las Noches if it weren't for him," Orihime added.

"You two would be more of a hindrance than a help. I assure you, I am quite capable of rescuing your Elf friend, should she happen to need rescuing," Kasai argued.

Artemis narrowed his eyes at her, "I never told you Holly is an Elf."

"We heard you talking when we were trying to decide how to approach you," Kasai responded, waving a hand dismissively.

"And then the Adjuchas conveniently showed up and simplified your decision," Artemis said suspiciously.

"Well yes, it is rather embarrassing that we didn't see it sooner."

"You're lying! You sent if after us so you could convince us you were here to help. Controlling an Adjuchas is easy for an Arrancar!" Orihime was surprised by her certainty.

Kasai started to reply when Artemis heard someone call his name. He turned towards the entrance and heard her again, "Arty! are you here?"

He flashed a vampiric grin towards the others in the cave, "I told you she would come." He ran outside with Orihime close behind him.

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 **Well we are getting close to the end now, I may or may not finish posting this by New Years, I guess we'll see. I will be trying to work on the next one more, but there might have to be a wait before I start posting it. Let me know what you thought of this chapter.**

 **Thanks and prayer,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	15. Chapter Fourteen Reunion

**This chapter is short, but it's the lead up to the climax. I didn't feel like I could have this and the climax in the same chapter and there was nothing else that needed happen before that so here it is.**

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 **Chapter Fourteen**

 **Reunion**

 **Abandoned Caves, Hueco Mundo**

"Holly!" Artemis called, running towards the path that led into the valley. He could see her running towards him, her chin-length auburn hair blown back by her speed.

"Arty!" she shouted, excitement replacing the question in her voice.

Artemis went down on his knees when they reached each other, allowing Holly to throw her arms around his neck while he wrapped his own around her. She was the only person aside from his mother and brothers that he felt comfortable hugging.

"You stupid Mud Boy! Why did you escape? We could have found you hours ago if you had just stayed put!" Holly's scolding was ruined by the fact that she was still hugging him.

"You didn't expect me to just accept the situation did you? Besides there were other things to consider."

Holly pulled back enough to see his face, but kept her hands on his shoulders, "Like what?"

"Like the fact that one of Koboi's henchmen wanted to dissect my cellmate."

Holly looked over her shoulder at a young man who had hung back behind her. Artemis heard Orihime approaching hesitantly behind him the other boy smiled, looking relieved. "Inoue-chan! Well this was easier than last time. I should leave Kurosaki behind more often." He started to approach Orihime as he spoke. Artemis released Holly and stood, stepping into his path.

"Wait a minute."

"Arty, it's OK. This is Ishida Uryu, he helped me come find you because he wanted to find her." Holly explained.

"I'm not worried about him hurting her. It's just that—" he glanced back at Orihime who nodded slightly then turned back to Ishida, "She doesn't remember you." There was no way to say it gently.

Ishida stopped walking. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm not certain, but I think she may have been mind-wiped."

"What does that mean?" Ishida's fingers twitched as if reaching for a weapon even though he didn't appear to be carrying one.

"It means her memories were erased," Holly told him.

"I don't remember anything before the Techno-crash," Orihime spoke up. She stood apart from the other three, just close enough not to have to shout.

"We weren't even in the World of the Living when that happened! We were in the Soul Society recovering from the war with Aizen, and waiting for the Shinigami to decide what to do with you. We only found out about the crash when they told us not to contact you and sent us back." Ishida's fists clenched at his sides as he spoke, realizing who must be responsible.

"So it was the Shinigami," Orihime whispered.

"Looks like cutting her off from the rest of you wasn't enough for them." Holly muttered.

"But shouldn't coming back here have made her remember?" Ishida asked.

Artemis shook his head, "If it's anything like the technology the People use then only a planted trigger would work," he glanced, guiltily at Orihime, "and I doubt they gave her the chance to prepare one."

"We have to get to Urahara, he'll know what to do," Ishida declared, his eyes gleaming with determination.

"We might have a problem there. You see Fowl needs to come back to our base with us," Kasai approached with the leisurely grace of a predator sure of its catch, the Visoreds close behind her.

"And why would he go with you?" Holly demanded, stepping between the Arrancar and her friend.

"Because he is a Visored. He needs to learn his Zanpakuto's name and how to control his inner Hollow. You are all welcome to come along of course." Kasai revealed a predatory smile to rival Artemis'.

"He can do that at Urahara's," Ishida insisted.

"Who is Urahara?" Artemis asked.

"A friend of Butler's," Holly answered, knowing that would be all he needed to hear, for now at least.

"He is not a Visored. He will not be able to teach you what you need," Kasai frowned, clearly she didn't like the alternative.

"He knows Visoreds. If he can't help you he'll find someone who can," Ishida countered.

Artemis noticed that Kasai was moving closer to Orihime, so he chose his words carefully, "Thank you for your offer, but I think it's best if Orihime and I stay with our friends."

Kasai sighed and drew her sword, "So much for doing this the easy way. Blaze, Moyasu!" there was a burst of reiatsu from her, stirring up the desert sand. When the dust cleared her dress had become black armor, her mask fragment had moved, the dragon shape now raised it's head so that the flames sprouting from it encircled the top of her head like a crown. He sword had shrunk to a double-edged dagger, it's hilt crafted in a spiral. "Let me see if I can change your minds." She brandished the dagger and moved towards Orihime.

Ishida moved faster. In a flash he was next to Orihime, taking hold of her just as Kasai slashed with her dagger. A moment later both Ishida and Orihime were standing next to Artemis and Holly. Ishida's right sleeve was torn and bloody where Kasai had cut him.

"Are you all right?" Holly asked, pulling a glowing blue bow out of thin air.

"It's just a scratch," Ishida assured her, doing the same though his bow was more complex, a cross with a circle around the point where the bars met.

"A scratch is all it takes. You cannot fight if you cannot hold you weapon." Kasai smiled gloatingly and squeezed the hilt of her dagger.

Ishida screamed, clutching his arm with his other hand. His bow dissipated and he collapsed. Holly drew in the particles from her bow and knelt next to him, placing her thumbs at either end of the scratch. "Heal!" she commanded. Sparks danced around the cut but did no good.

"Magic won't work. It won't heal until I want it to. As long as it is there I control how much pain he is in. Why don't you all make it easy for him and agree to come back with us?"

Holly stood and fired an arrow at Kasai. It hit her square in the center of her chest, but did not appear to do any damage. She hadn't even tried to block it.

"Did you think such a weak attack would bring me down? I ruled this world alongside Aizen! I will not be defeated so easily!"

"Well I'm out of ideas," Holly muttered, looking at Artemis. He didn't know what to do either. How could they fight someone who only had to cut them once to bring them down?

Suddenly Koboi's voice spoke from behind them. "I see you found my missing prisoners. You can keep the Quincy if you need a new torture toy. The rest come with me."

Kasai relaxed her grip on her dagger and Ishida went limp. The pain was gone for the moment. "I am here to bring them to the Society of the Evening Star. If you get in my way I will kill you."

"So it was Rowan Long who sent you. I will have to talk to him about this, after I've dealt with you."

Koboi drew her own sword, "Strike, Kobura!"

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 **All right so Moyasu means "burn" I wanted a fire theme with Kasai becouse of her Zanpkutous power, I can't think of anything that hurts more than being burned, espicially while it is happening. Kobura means "cobra", Koboi was associated with snakes in the Artemis Fowl series and I wanted to keep with that. Anyway we're getting really close to the end here and hopefully I will be able to post on time and get this finished by New Years.**

 **Thanks and prayer,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	16. Chapter Fifteen Bloodshed

**I didn't get a chance to post yesterday, but lukily I was able to get it up today. Again this chapter is kind of short, but it is the climax and there really wasn't a better place to end it.**

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 **Chapter Fifteen**

 **Bloodshed**

 **Abandoned Caves, Hueco Mundo**

Koboi's sword became a long whip that reached the ground and curled around itself. The back of her mask remnant had fanned out on either side, giving the impression of a cobra's hood.

Stuck between the Arrancars Artemis felt as if the air had suddenly become heavy and was pressing down on him. He glanced at his companions and saw that Holly had slouched a bit, indicating she felt the pressure too, but Orihime, kneeling next to Ishida didn't seem to notice.

Three more Arrancars approached from different directions. Artemis recognized the one who had brought Orihime back from the lab. He was certain he had not seen the blue-haired man or the green-haired woman before. He wondered if they were the others Schiffer had said Orihime healed. The Visoreds scattered, pulling out their swords and conjuring masks seemingly out of the air. Each of them attacked one of the new arrivals.

Kasai flashed past Artemis and his allies, her dagger raised. Koboi lashed her whip forward, wrapping it around Kasai's arm. Kasai raised her free hand, pointing a single finger at Koboi, "Cero Oscuras." Koboi tugged her whip loose and jumped to the side, narrowly dodging the red beam of light that hit the cliff behind her, collapsing several of the caves.

Ulquiorra didn't bother drawing his Zanpakuto against Hibiki, blocking attacks from his opponent's sword with his arm. His hierro-the hardened skin of an Arrancar-kept the blade from cutting him. Hibiki released a burst of sound from his Zanpakuto. The force of it shifted the sand around them and threatened to back Ulquiorra towards the caves, but he held his ground.

Grimmjow ran around the pillars of sand that rose at a command from Daichi's Zanpakuto. He occasionally had to jump off of one that rose under him. He knew he could have avoided them altogether by taking to the air and standing on reiatsu, but what kind of fight would that be? He fired a cero at Daichi, but the Visored jumped to the top of one of his pillars. Grinning Grimmjow fired a cero into the pillar, collapsing it.

Nel closed her eyes against the blinding flash from Akio's Zanpakuto. She heard a shift of sand as he approached her from behind, and she dropped, kicking his legs out from under him. He rolled away from her and sprang to his feet, Zanpakuto raised. Nel used Sonido to quickly catch up to him and thrust with her Zanpakuto. Akio blocked her, setting off another flash as their Zanpakutos collided.

Koboi tried to wrap her whip around Kasai's throat, Kasai ducked under it and lunged forward, dagger extended. Koboi turned sideways, barely avoiding the blades edge. She took a step back with Sonido and fired a cero. Kasai deflected it with her dagger.

Hibiki flashed behind Ulquiorra, and swung his Zanpakuto. Ulquiorra whirled to face him and grabbed the wrist that held his sword. Hibiki tried to break free, but Ulquiorra tightened his grip until the bone snapped. Hibiki dropped the blade as Ulquiorra released him and caught it in his other hand. He released another sonic blast and jumped back, determined not to go down easily.

Daichi swung his Zanpakuto at Grimmjow as he landed on his feet next to the collapsing pillar. Grimmjow blocked the blow easily, "C'mon! You call this a fight?". With a gesture from his Zanpakuto Daichi brought another pillar down toward Grimmjow who jumped back out of the way. Daichi sprung over the remains of the pillar, prepared to strike.

Nel couldn't see. She hadn't had enough warning to close her eyes before that last flash of light. With her ability to sense reiatsu she could still tell where Akio was, she lay where she had allowed herself to collapse, letting him believe she was stunned. He approached slowly, suspecting a trick, but she didn't move.

Kasai's frustration was beginning to affect her attacks. She was used to having the upper hand in any fight, but Koboi's whip made it difficult for her to get close enough to strike. Koboi's insufferable grin revealed that she was confident she was winning. Kasai's attacks grew more and more reckless, not caring if the whip struck her anymore. If she could just cut Koboi once their fight would be over. But Koboi knew that too and used her long-range tactics to their full advantage.

Ulquiorra easily blocked the series of small compact sonic attacks Hibiki hurled at him. The Visored knew if they fought at close range again he was dead, yet he refused to retreat or just get it over with. Ulquiorra approached slowly between the attacks. Hibiki was trying to back away but the distance between them was closing. Once he was close enough Hibiki swung his sword at Schiffer who blocked with his left arm. Then he plunged his right hand into the Visoreds chest.

Grimmjow laughed at the look on Daichi's face when he jumped over the fallen pillar only to see his opponent was not there. Grimmjow was at the top of one of the other pillars and waited for the Visored to realize where he had gone before jumping down. He extended his Zanpakuto as he fell and Daichi looked up just before the blade pierced his heart. "Well that was disappointing," Grimmjow grumbled. "I ain't had a good fight since Kurosaki left."

Nel felt Akio nudge her side with his boot. She didn't move until she felt the breeze as his Zanpakuto swung down toward her. She rolled away from it and heard it strike deep into the sand. She leaped to her feet and lunged forward, feeling the resistance as her Zanpakuto hit flesh. She leaned into it, forcing it through until she felt it dragged down. She pulled it back and heard the thump of her opponent's body hitting the ground. Nel turned her back to the sound, she had no desire for that to be the first thing she saw when her eyes cleared.

Kasai was distracted as her Visoreds fell. She had been certain the ones she had chosen would be able to defeat those Arrancars. She ran towards Koboi, determined to bring her down. Koboi wrapped her whip around Kasai's wrists, tightening it until she was forced to drop her Zanpakuto. Grimmjow leaped in front of her and picked it up, jumping back just as quickly. Kasai looked around to see that all the other Arrancars had taken positions around her. What she had once thought impossible had happened. She was beaten.

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Ishida sat up as the Visoreds and Arrancars fought. "We have to get out of here. Before they finish," he said, stating the obvious.

"I hope you have a way, because we don't," Artemis replied.

"We do. Urahara gave us a device to open a Garganta. You will have to stay behind us. We have to make a path through it," Holly explained. Artemis and Orihime nodded their understanding.

Ishida pulled out a cylinder with a red button on top and pushed it. A hole opened in the air in front of the group. Holly and Ishida went in first and Artemis followed without hesitation. Orihime was the last one through, looking back as it closed behind her.

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 **Well that's all for now. the last chapter should be up next week. I'm not sure how long it will be before I start posting the sequel. I have started writing it, but I want to be further along before I post it and I might not get much of a chance work on it through Christmas. Hopefully it won't be too long.**

 **Merry Christmas!**

 **Thanks and prayers,**

 **RAHbooks.**


	17. Chapter Sixteen Beginning

**I'm not sure if I will get the chance to post later this week so I decided to go ahead and get this last chapter up. Hope ya'll enjoy it.**

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 **Chapter Sixteen**

 **Beginning**

 **Karakura, Japan**

Artemis, Holly, Uryu and Orihime stepped out of the Garganta and into the the sunlit desert landscape.

"I thought you said we were going to a shop basement," Artemis said. He had peppered Holly and Uryu with questions about Urahara and their destination on the way through the Garganta.

"I forgot to mention his unusual taste," Holly responded. She turned to Ishida, "How is your arm?"

"It's fine now. When she did that it felt like I was burning." He held out his arm looking at the seemingly insignificant cut.

"Holly, can you heal it now?" Artemis asked.

"Maybe, but it seems kind of pointless."

"If she can control the pain someone feels when she cuts them she may be able to track us with it," Artemis explained.

Holly drew in a breath as she collected reiatsu. Once again she placed her thumbs at each end of the cut and the magical sparks did nothing. Holly frowned at the cut. "Now what? Do we have to cut his arm off?"

Ishida did not seem alarmed by the suggestion, he simply looked at Orihime. "You can do it."

Orihime shook her head, "I don't think I can."

"The Shinigami took your memories because they were afraid of you. You reject things. That's how you heal, by rejecting that someone was ever hurt." Ishida tried to convince her.

"I don't remember how!"

"The same way you hid us," Artemis told her, laying a hand on her shoulder. "You concentrated on not wanting us to be seen, so concentrate on getting rid of that cut."

"I'll try," Orihime whispered, uncertainly. She stood next to Ishida, and not sure of what else to do, copied Holly's gesture of placing her thumbs at the cut's ends. A small golden dome spread over it and the cut began to close. They all watched, amazed as the skin knit back together not even leaving a scar. "I did it," her voice was filled with disbelief.

"Good work!" They all looked up to see Urahara standing next to the ladder. "Fowl-san you would make an excellent teacher. Inoue-chan, it's good to see you again. You may not remember me, but I'm Urahara Kisuke."

"You knew!" Ishida yell, shoving his way past the others to reach Urahara. "You knew what the Shinigami did to her!"

"Well yes, but—"

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Urahara sighed and opened his fan, "I was afraid that if you knew you would go looking for her and they would have killed you both. After she was taken I thought seeing Hueco Mundo again would trigger her memories. Apparently the People's technology is very thorough."

"They used our technology?" Holly asked.

"They tried their own methods on her once, when she was first attacked by a Hollow and it didn't work," Urahara informed her.

Butler make it down the ladder before anyone could ask more questions. "Artemis, Holly, you made it! I see you rescued Ishida's friend too."

"It is good to see you again, old friend." Artemis greeted Butler who was already checking him over for broken bones or other injuries.

"Honestly, Butler, don't you think I would have fixed him up already?" Holly asked in a false offended tone.

"I know, I just can't help worrying. What happened with Koboi?"

"The last we saw of her she was fighting someone at least as dangerous as she is," Artemis explained about Kasai and what they knew of her Zanpakuto.

Urahara frowned, "I've heard of her. Aizen used her to keep the Espada in line. When he was defeated the other Arrancars considered ganging up on her, her Zanpakuto is powerful but it's only effective in a close fight and a group of them could have brought her down so she came to the World of the Living. She's a dangerous enemy." He seemed to be focusing on Orihime as he spoke.

"We figured that out already," Ishida said, laying a hand over the tear in his sleeve where she had cut him.

"That's not all," Holly spoke up. "Koboi mentioned Rowan Long. It sounded like Kasai was working with him. He's and Elf, he used to be a LEP officer. Until I found out he was killing humans whenever he had a chance." Everyone was quiet as they considered why such an elf would work with Arrancars.

"What do we do now?" Orihime asked.

Urahara looked at the four recently returned travelers. "Clearly none of you are ready to face these people head on. You're going to rest tonight. Then tomorrow we start training."

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 **Society of the Evening Star Base**

Kasai fumed as Koboi, Nel, Grimmjow and Ulquiorra escorted her to the Society of the Evening Star's base. Rowan Long and Szyal Apporo Granz were waiting for them.

"We seem to have a problem," Koboi stated. "She came with three Visoreds to take my prisoners. Because of them we lost them all."

"This is a misunderstanding," Rowan replied calmly. "I sent her to retrieve the prisoners. Since Granz was here and this is where we need Short I told her to bring them here. Considering thier record I was not confident those three would succeed. I was simply taking precautions."

"Just remember who is giving the orders. Next time check with me before you pull something like that. In fact I think these three should work with her from now on." Koboi decided.

"Of course," Rowan agreed.

"Now, how is you assignment coming?" Koboi asked Granz.

The scientist smiled, "All the tests have been successful. I could show you if you like."

"I would," Koboi and Rowan followed Granz away.

Kasai turned to the other three Arrancars. "I know you could have caught them before I arrived. The only reason you fought my Visoreds was to give them a chance to escape. But you answer to me now." She snatched her dagger from Grimmjow, slicing Nel's cheek in the same motion. Grimmjow started to lunge for her, but Ulquiorra grabbed his arm, holding him back. She spoke directly to them now. "If either of you boys acts up, she will be the one who pays for it."

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 **The next story in the series will be** _ **Colliding Destinies: Searching**_ **. I'm not sure when I will be able to start posting it. I'm looking into a job and I'm not sure how it will affect my writing if I get it. Either I will spend more time writing because of the more dependable schedule, or I won't have as much time to write. Regardless I will try to get the next story up soon.**

 **I hope ya'll had a good Christmas, and will have a happy New Year.**

 **Thanks and prayer,**

 **RAHbooks.**


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